Secret Spy Satellite Launches Atop Atlas V Rocket

The NROL-42 spy satellite lifted off from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base this morning (Sept. 24) at 1:49 a.m. EDT (0549 GMT; 10:49 p.m. Sept. 23 local California time), streaking skyward atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. NROL-42 is the latest addition to the fleet of spacecraft built and operated by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). NRO satellite missions are classified, so it's unclear what orbit NROL-42 will occupy, or what exactly the craft will be doing as it zooms around Earth. More

(Source: Space.com - Sep 25)