SpaceX Launches New Wave of NRO Reconnaissance Satellites Written 12 May 2026
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SpaceX Falcon 9 launche NROL-172 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base. | Credit: Spaceflight Now: YouTube; framegrab
Spaceflight Now reports, “The National Reconnaissance Office flew its 13th mission supporting an intelligence-gathering constellation it calls the “proliferated architecture” on Monday night. As with the first dozen missions, this batch of satellites (of an undisclosed quantity) flew to orbit on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The mission, dubbed NROL-172, launched from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base. Liftoff happened at 7:13:50 p.m. PDT (10:13:50 p.m. EDT / 0213:50 UTC), nearly four hours after the opening of the window.”
Full Story (Spaceflight Now)
Video
SpaceX Falcon 9 launches NROL-172 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base. (Launch occurs at 30:26 mark)
Spaceflight Now: YouTube
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