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(Image source: United Launch Alliance)
BY MATT MORENO
The United States launched its largest rocket ever into space Wednesday carrying a top-secret
payload.
The Delta IV Heavy unmanned rocket took off from California's Vandenberg Air Force base
at 11:03 a.m. local time as part of a mission for the United States' National Reconnaissance
Office. (Via KCAL)
It's unknown exactly what the 235-foot-tall, billion-dollar rocket is carrying, but it's
essentially a spy satellite — and it's said to be able to take extremely fine pictures
of areas around the world. (Via YouTube / SpaceVidsNet)
ComputerWorld reports, "The satellite will apparently be launched into a sun-synchronous
orbit -- one that's favored for intelligence gathering because it brings the satellite
over any point on Earth at the same time each day. That makes it easier to compare images
from one day to the next."
The Los Angeles Times points out, "Although Cape Canaveral, Fla., is the launch site for
NASA's civilian space program, Vandenberg has been the site of military space projects
for more than half a century."
Space.com says it's the "24th Delta 4 mission" and "second Delta 4 Heavy launch" from that
launch site this year.
While it currently reigns as the biggest and baddest rocket sent into space by the U.S.
to date, many other rockets are in the works looking to topple it including —
— NASA's Space Launch System being constructed to send astronauts toward asteroids and onto
Mars. IT will reportedly way a whopping 70 metric tons.