NATION : Delta 2 Puts ‘Navstar’ Into Orbit
- Share via
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — An Air Force Delta 2 rocket knifed through a blue sky today and successfully boosted into orbit a $65-million “Navstar” satellite, the fifth in a globe-spanning network of military navigation beacons.
Running 24 hours behind schedule, the $30-million Delta 2, equipped with nine strap-on boosters for extra power, thundered to life at 1:10 p.m., 16 minutes late because of concern about high winds aloft, and quickly vaulted away from Launch Pad 17 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Housed inside a protective nose cone at the top of the 126-foot rocket was the fifth of 21 new Global Positioning System--GPS--navigation satellites designed to tell military units their locations to within 53 feet anywhere in the world.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
