The final flight of United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket is still several years off, but an important era for the once-dominant launch company came to a close last week.
The final flight of an Atlas V for the Amazon Leo broadband constellation lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 12:30 am EDT (04:30 UTC) last Thursday, sending 29 satellites to orbit to move the network closer to providing initial services.
All 29 spacecraft deployed from the Atlas V rocket less than an hour after launch. They will use onboard propulsion to raise their orbits from an altitude of approximately 289 miles (465 kilometers) to their final operating positions at 392 miles (630 kilometers) above the Earth.
