A United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket carrying a payload for the National
Reconnaissance omce (NRO) successfully lifted off today from Space
Launch Complex-6 here at 1:10 p.m. PST. The Delta IV Heavy, at 235 feet
or approximately 23 stories tall, is the largest rocket ever to launch from
the West Coast of the United States. The mission is in support of national
defense. The ULA Delta IV Heavy vehicle featured a center common booster core
with two strap-on common booster cores. Each common booster core was
powered by the RS-68 cryogenic engine producing 660,000 pounds of
thrust. An RL 108-2 cryogenic engine powered the second stage. Both
engines are built by Pratt & Whitney Rocketclyne. The payload was
encased by a five-meter diameter (16. 7-foot diameter), 63-foot composite
bi-sector payload fairing. ULA constructed the Delta IV Heavy launch
vehicle in Decatur, Alabama.