Particle.news
Download on the App Store
8 ARTICLES
·
8h ago

SpaceX Targets Monday Falcon 9 Launch From Vandenberg for NRO Recon Mission

The flight advances the NRO’s move to a larger web of smaller satellites launched through faster-turn national security contracts.

Starship V3 — Ship 39 atop Booster 19 — stands on the newly commissioned Pad 2 at Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, in this image shared by SpaceX on X on May 9, 2026. Credit: SpaceX
Image

Overview

  • SpaceX plans to launch the NROL-172 mission from Vandenberg on Monday during a 3:28–7:28 p.m. PT window, with a backup opportunity Tuesday if it slips.
  • The Falcon 9 first stage, flying as booster B1103 for the second time, will aim to land on the drone ship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific.
  • The payloads will grow the NRO’s proliferated network of small reconnaissance satellites, with officials citing GEOINT contributions from electro‑optical imagers, radar sensors and relay craft that use laser crosslinks.
  • The mission is the second Falcon 9 flight booked under the U.S. Space Force’s National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1, a pathway built for quicker, more flexible launches.
  • SpaceX will stream the launch live, and the rocket’s southeast track could make the plume visible from parts of Arizona if lighting conditions allow.