SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 on Monday to launch a spy satellite into low Earth orbit. It is the first time that a private company other than ULA has launched a US military satellite. The rocket’s first stage has landed back on Earth.
The NROL-76 launch took place on Monday Place from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Actually, SpaceX had planned to launch the rocket on Sunday, but problems with sensors caused a 52-second lift-off delay for a day. It is the 34th launch for SpaceX, but the first to launch a military satellite. Ten minutes after launch, the first stage landed back on the platform on Earth, making it usable again.
There are no details about the satellite, but SpaceX has signed the agreement with the National Reconnaissance Office, one of the seventeen intelligence agencies of the US government. The NRO is responsible for the US spy satellites. Until now, the United Launch Alliance had a monopoly on launches for the United States Department of Defense. This alliance is a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
SpaceX has agreements for a total of more than 70 launches. This includes contracts with the US Air Force to launch GPS satellites into orbit in 2018 and 2019.