The Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket carrying NASA's Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System, or CYGNSS, spacecraft is released and the first stage ignites at 8:37 a.m. EST.
The rocket was released from the Orbital ATK L-1011 Stargazer aircraft flying over the Atlantic Ocean offshore from Daytona Beach, Florida following takeoff from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. This image was taken from a NASA F-18 chase plane provided by Armstrong Flight Research Center in California. The CYGNSS satellites will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes.
NASA/Lori Losey
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