Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
THE LAST OF ITS KIND
ULA launches last Delta 4-Medium rocket — on an important mission
After 17 years and 29 missions, the final Delta 4 rocket to ever fly in a medium configuration soared over the Space Coast one last time Thursday morning.
United Launch Alliance is phasing out the class of rockets as it prepares to debut its Vulcan Centaur rockets from with launches from Kennedy Space Center as early as April 2021. ULA already phased out its lighter lift vehicle, the Delta 2, in September 2018. The third variant, Delta 4-Heavy, still has five more missions ahead before it, too, is taken out of circulation.
“When we retire the entire product line then we’ll do something to commemorate that,” said Gary Wentz, ULA’s vice president of government and commercial programs. A Delta 2 will be displayed at Kennedy Space Center’s Rocket Garden.
The launch took off at 9:06 a.m. from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s launch complex 37, causing congestion near Kennedy Space Center early Thursday as cars poured in with spectators hoping to catch a final glimpse of the Delta 4-Medium.
ULA launched an important payload for the U.S. Air Force Thursday: The second in a series of next-generation GPS satellites that will provide connectivity for more than 4 billion military, commercial and civil users.
The satellites have three-times better accuracy and eight-times improved anti-jamming capabilities that will be particularly critical for military troops to protect their signals from interception by opposing forces. The spacecraft will also be able to stay in orbit 15 years — about 25% longer than the GPS satellites on-orbit today. The satellites, built by Lockheed Martin and called GPS III, will eventually replace the satellites on-orbit today and provide the added capability of connecting with Europe’s GPS system, Galileo.