Columbia Launches
10.11.1996

Rocket engines blazing, the Space Shuttle Columbia arcs into Florida's morning sky after lifting off from pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center. Seen here in January of 1996, this space shuttle has been...

An Atlas Centaur Rocket Launches
14.12.1995

Atlas Centaur rockets have launched over 75 successful unmanned missions. These missions included the Surveyor series - the first vehicles to make soft landings on the Moon, Pioneer 10 and 11 - the first missions...

A Russian Proton Rocket Launches Zvezda
18.07.2000

The Russian Proton rocket is the tallest rocket in routine use. First deployed in 1965, the rocket stands typically 40 meters tall, can carry unusually heavy payloads into space, and maintains a high record of reliability.

Atlas V Launches MMS
22.03.2015

Birds don't fly this high. Airplanes don't go this fast. The Statue of Liberty weighs less. No species other than human can even comprehend what is going on, nor could any human just a millennium ago. The launch of a rocket bound for space is an event that inspires awe and challenges description.

A Delta Rocket Launches
13.12.1995

A Delta rocket is seen being launched in 1988. In use since 1960, Delta rockets have been launched successfully over 200 times. Scientific satellites placed into orbit by a Delta rocket include IUE, COBE, LAGEOS-I, ROSAT, EUVE, GEOTAIL, and WIND.

A Rocket Launch at Sunset
28.09.2005

What kind of cloud is that? Last week, a sunset rocket launch lit up the sky and was photographed by sky enthusiasts as far as hundreds of miles away. The lingering result was a photogenic rocket plume.

A Launch and a Landing
27.09.2014

Taken from an Atlantic beach, Cape Canaveral, planet Earth, four identically framed digital images are combined in this night skyscape. Slightly shifted short star trails dot the sky, but the exposure times were adjusted to follow the flight of a Falcon 9 rocket.

Chandrayaan 2 Launch
27.07.2019

On July 22nd this GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) MkIII rocket vanished from sight into a cloud bank an instant after this dramatic snapshot was taken. Launched from India's Satish Dhawan Space Centre it carried the Chandrayaan 2 mission spacecraft into Earth orbit.

APOD: 2025 February 17 Б SpaceX Rocket Launch Plume over California
17.02.2025

What's happened to the sky? Last Monday, the photogenic launch plume from a SpaceX rocket launch created quite a spectacle over parts of southern California and Arizona. Looking at times like a giant...

Dawn Launch Mosaic
29.09.2007

Shortly after sunrise on Thursday at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the Dawn spacecraft began its journey to the asteroid belt, arcing eastward into a blue and cloudy sky. Dawn's voyage began on a conventional, chemically fueled Delta II rocket, but will continue with an innovative ion propulsion system.