Window opens for a SpaceX Falcon 9 carrying the GPS III Space Vehicle 05 mission
SpaceX has successfully launched the fifth GPS satellite for the U.S. military.
The GPS III SV05 satellite – nicknamed for NASA astronaut Neil Armstrong – launched aboard the 227-foot-tall Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, blasting off at 12:09 p.m. ET.
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"We have liftoff! The Falcon 9 rocket carrying the latest GPS III satellite has launched!" the Space Force Space and Missiles Systems Center said, retweeting SpaceX's Twitter video of the moment.
Deployment of the Lockheed Martin-built satellite was confirmed more than an hour and a half later.
It is expected to maneuver into a 12,550-mile-high orbit, according to Spaceflight Now, and join the current constellation of satellites.
Three advanced GPS III missions have previously launched on Falcon 9 rockets over the last couple of years and Space.com reported Thursday that the U.S, military plans to launch a total of 10 upgraded GPS satellites to replace some older ones already in space.
The next-generation satellites will include "new technology and advanced capabilities" and meet the "needs of the military to mitigate threats" to GPS infrastructure, according to Lockheed Martin.
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The aerospace defense company said that the satellites are the "most powerful GPS satellite ever built," with three times greater accuracy and up to eight times increased anti-jam protection.
"GPS III was also intentionally created with a modular design so that new technology and capabilities could be added as technology changes or new mission needs change," it noted.
The next GPS III mission – also contracted to the Elon Musk-founded company – is slated for sometime in 2022.
In addition to the satellite, the used rocket flew a payload for the first time.
It was SpaceX's 19th mission this year and its 89th successful booster recovery, with Falcon 9’s first stage landing at around 12:19 p.m. ET on the Just Read the Instructions droneship positioned in the Atlantic Ocean.
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In another first, SpaceX's recovery vessel HOS Briarwood would make its debut to recover the payload fairings after they fall back to Earth.
The fairings deployed at 12:14 p.m. ET, according to SpaceX's Twitter account.
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