A United
Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket leaps skyward on Dec. 20, 2007, delivering a replacement GPS navigation satellite to the GPS
network.
Each of the
rocket's six solid boosters generates roughly 100,000 pounds of thrust to lift
the payload into Earth orbit. Firing together with the main engine, they create
over 700,000 pounds of thrust that takes the rocket ten miles up within one
minute.
The U.S. Air
Force's GPS 2R-18 spacecraft is the fifth of eight satellites meant to help
replace the aging GPS satellite constellation. The new satellites will help
reduce navigation errors for the civilian network, while improving targeting of
GPS-guided weapons and making the signal more jam-resistant for the military.
— United Launch Alliance and SPACE.com Staff
Credit: Carleton Bailie, United
Launch Alliance
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