New GPS satellite headed to upgrade navigation network

A replacement Global Positioning System spacecraft for the world's best-known satellite constellation ascended into orbit Friday night aboard a Delta 4 rocket in a spectacular sendoff at sunset. Igniting its main engine and twin solid rockets at 8:03 p.m. EDT, the 205-foot-tall vehicle lifted off on 1.2 million pounds of chest-thumping thrust. The launch has been delayed a day by inclement weather. Arcing to the northeast, the Delta 4 accelerated through Mach 1 in less than a minute, jettisoned its strap-on boosters a minute later and cruised out to staging in four minutes. More

(Source: SpaceFlight Now - May 17)