WATCH REPLAY: ULA Delta IV Rocket Launches Successfully From Cape Canaveral Saturday Night

By  //  March 19, 2017

rocket lit up the Space Coast night sky

WATCH REPLAY: A United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket lit up the Space Coast night sky Saturday. The rocket took off from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 8:18 p.m. after a 40-minute delay because of a ground system issue, according to United Launch Alliance officials.

BREVARD COUNTY • CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA – A United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket lit up the Space Coast night sky Saturday.

The rocket took off from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 8:18 p.m. after a 40-minute delay because of a ground system issue, according to United Launch Alliance officials.

Rocket/Payload: A United Launch Alliance Delta IV Medium+ (5,4) rocket will launch the ninth Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS-9) mission for the U.S. Air Force.

Date/Site/Launch Time: Saturday, March 18, 2017, from Space Launch Complex (SLC)-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The launch window was 7:44-8:59 p.m. EDT.


Launch Notes: WGS-9 will mark the seventh flight of the Delta IV in the Medium + (5,4)configuration; all launches in this configuration have delivered WGS missions to orbit. This mission also will be the 35th launch of the Delta IV since its inaugural launch in 2002.

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Mission Description: WGS satellites are important elements of a new high-capacity satellite communications system providing enhanced communications capabilities to our troops in the field. WGS has 19 independent coverage areas, 18 of which can be positioned throughout its field-of-view.

This includes eight steerable/shapeable X-band beams formed by separate transmit/receive phased arrays; 10 Ka-band beams served by independently steerable diplexed antennas; and one transmit/receive X-band Earth-coverage beam.

WGS can tailor coverage areas and connect X-band and Ka-band users anywhere within its field-of-view. The X-band phased array antenna enables anti-jam functionality without sacrificing performance.

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A United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket lit up the Space Coast night sky Saturday. (ULA Image)