Watch the Launch

Additional Media

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

NROL-129

Circle Image

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Government/Top Secret

Low Earth Orbit Launch Area 0 B Wallops Island, Virginia, USA Probability: 95%

Classified payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.

Minotaur IV

Family: Minotaur
Configuration:

The Minotaur IV launch system is derived from the Peacekeeper ICBM. The first three stages are taken directly from decommissioned Peacekeeper missiles. A fourth stage, the Orion-38, is taken from the Pegasus family of air-launched rockets.

Specifications
  • Stages
    4
  • Length
    23.9 m
  • Diameter
    2.35 m
  • Fairing Diameter
  • Launch Mass
    86 T
  • Thrust
    2200 kN
Family
  • Name
    Minotaur IV
  • Family
    Minotaur
  • Variant
  • Alias
    Peacekeeper SLV
  • Full Name
    Minotaur IV
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
  • Low Earth Orbit
    1735 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

Orbital ATK

Circle Image
President: David W. Thompson Founded: 2015 Successes: 6 Failures: 0 Pending: 0

Agency Type: Commercial

Orbital ATK Inc. was an American aerospace manufacturer and defense industry company. It was formed in 2015 from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of Alliant Techsystems. Orbital ATK was purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2018.

INFO WIKI

Related News

Spaceflight Now

Photos: Minotaur rocket vaults into orbit from Virginia

Spaceflight Now

Minotaur rocket successfully deploys four NRO satellites in orbit

Spaceflight Now

Minotaur rocket ready to launch four payloads for U.S. spy satellite agency

NASA Spaceflight

Northrop Grumman successfully launches NROL-129 from MARS

Spaceflight Now

Photos: Minotaur 4 rocket ready for launch from Virginia

Wallops Island, Virginia, USA

Launch Area 0 B


Falcon 9
Success
3 hours, 31 minutes ago
Starlink Group 6-18
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral, FL, USA

A batch of satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Ceres-1
Failure
3 days, 2 hours ago
Jilin-1 High Resolution 04B
Launch Area 95A - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

New high resolution Earth observation satellite for the Jilin-1 commercial Earth observation satellites constellation.


Falcon 9
Success
4 days, 3 hours ago
Starlink Group 6-17
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral, FL, USA

A batch of 22 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Electron
Failure
5 days ago
We Will Never Desert You (Capella Acadia 2)
Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1B - Onenui Station, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

Payload consists of a single SAR Earth-imaging Acadia satellite, a new generation satellite designed, manufactured, and operated by Capella Space.


Long March 2D
Success
1 week ago
Yaogan 39 Group 02
Launch Complex 3 (LC-3/LA-1) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Chinese reconnaissance satellites.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 1 day ago
Starlink Group 6-16
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral, FL, USA

A batch of satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Soyuz 2.1a
Success
1 week, 1 day ago
Soyuz MS-24
31/6 - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan

Soyuz MS-24 carried two cosmonauts and one astronaut to the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in K…


Firefly Alpha
Success
1 week, 2 days ago
FLTA003 (VICTUS NOX)
Space Launch Complex 2W - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Third flight of the Firefly Alpha small sat launcher, carrying a payload for the US Department of Defense.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 5 days ago
Starlink Group 7-2
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

A batch of 21 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Atlas V 551
Success
1 week, 6 days ago
NROL-107 (Silent Barker)
Space Launch Complex 41 - Cape Canaveral, FL, USA

Classified space situational awareness (SSA) payload for the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).