The National Reconnaissance Office, in collaboration with the Small Launch and Targets Division of the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command, Space Launch Delta 30 and Northrop Grumman, has launched the NROL-174 mission aboard a Minotaur IV rocket from the Space Launch Complex 8 at Vandenberg Space Force Base on April 16.
The agency said Wednesday the NROL-174 mission, facilitated through the Rocket Systems Launch Program, is intended to deploy multiple national security payloads into orbit.
Previous Minotaur Rocket Launches
The NROL-174 is the third NRO mission launched under the Orbital/Suborbital Program-3 contract. The launch builds on previous missions deployed aboard other Minotaur rockets, particularly the NROL-129 and NROL-111 missions in July 2020 and June 2021, respectively. Both missions were launched from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. NROL-174 is the first mission to utilize the Minotaur rocket from Vandenberg since 2011, the last one being NROL-66.
The NRO deployed over 150 satellites in the past two years, with plans to launch 12 more in 2025.
Laura Robinson, director of the NROL-174 mission, commented, “The NROL-174 Minotaur IV rocket was once a Peacekeeper ICBM that sat watch 24/7 in support of our nation’s nuclear deterrent. Now modified for space launch, it completed its final mission of placing a national security payload on orbit, a credit to the decades-long dedication of those who were part of the missile’s early development, maintenance and operations, and innovative conversion into the Minotaur IV rocket.”
