PORTLAND (Sputnik) — The United States launched on Wednesday a confidential reconnaissance satellite on an Atlas V carrier rocket from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in the state of California.
The United Launch Alliance launched the Atlas V 401 for the country's NROL-79 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office at 9:49 PT (17:49 GMT).
The NROL-79 mission is classified and the purpose and final orbit altitude of the satellite are secret.
The National Reconnaissance Office develops space-based reconnaissance systems for US intelligence.
The NROL-79 mission could be a pair of Naval Ocean Surveillance Satellite spacecraft used by the US Navy, according to Spaceflight Insider.