The Lockheed Martin, Boeing joint venture said the NROL-38 reconnaissance spacecraft launched from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station atop a ULA Atlas 5 rocket.

   "Congratulations to the NRO and to all the mission partners involved in this critical national security launch,” ULA Vice President for Mission Operations Jim Sponnick said in a statement. “This launch marks an important milestone as we celebrate the 50th successful Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) mission, with 31 Atlas 5 and 19 Delta 4 missions flown since August 2002.”