MUOS-2 (Atlas V) Space Launch Complex 41 |
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station 19 July 2013 |
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with five solid rocket boosters and an oversized fairing lifts the massive Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) communications satellite into orbit for the US Navy at 9:00 a.m. on 19 July 2013 from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The second in an eventual constellation of four satellites, the system will provide ultra-high frequency satellite communications for secure voice, video, and data connections to mobile military users. The rocket was visible for only a few seconds at liftoff before disappearing into the almost solid cloud deck then reappearing for a brief moment through a small hole in the clouds before disappearing again for good. | |
The wind twists the exhaust cloud into a serpentine shape. Note how the exhaust disappears into the clouds. Also note the Air Force surveillance helicopter from Patrick Air Force Base in the air left of the first power pole. | |
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