US Air Force to Launch New GPS Satellite Tonight

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket rolls out to the launch pad carrying the U.S. Air Force's GPS 2F-7 navigation satellite. The mission will launch Aug. 1, 2014 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket rolls out to the launch pad carrying the U.S. Air Force's GPS 2F-7 navigation satellite. The mission will launch Aug. 1, 2014 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. (Image credit: United Launch Alliance)

The United States Air Force will loft a new, advanced GPS satellite into orbit tonight (Aug. 1), and you can watch the launch live online.

The Air Force's GPS 2F-7 is set to launch to space atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket at 11:23 p.m. EDT (0323 Aug. 2 GMT) on Friday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The new satellite will help to further bolster the Air Force's Global Positioning Satellite network, used by civilians and military personnel around the world to map their locations, time and velocity. 

"GPS is a system of satellites, ground stations and user equipment that produce the signals needed to enable positioning, navigation and timing services to users worldwide," Col. Bill Cooley, director of the Global Positioning System Directorate, told reporters last week. "The GPS constellation is healthy, robust and more capable than it has ever been in GPS history." [The World's Tallest Rockets Compared]

The Air Force is set to launch the GPS 2F-7 satellite into orbit on August 1, 2014. (Image credit: United Launch Alliance Facebook)

This launch will mark the third GPS satellite launch this year, and it is the seventh in a series of 12 satellites, according to Air Force officials.

The GPS network of satellites is the Department of Defense's largest satellite constellation, and it includes 31 currently operational satellites in orbit now. In all, the Air Force's GPS constellation needs 24 satellites to be fully functional, however, the extra spacecraft provide some backup in case any problems pop up.

The $245 million GPS 2F-7 will join six GPS 2-As, 12 GPS 2-Rs, 7 GPS 2-RMs and the six other GPS 2-F satellites already orbiting Earth.

"GPS 2F-7 is the seventh in a series of next generation GPS satellites and the second in this series launched aboard an Atlas 5 launch vehicle," Laura Maginnis, ULA's deputy director of mission management, told reporters. "The satellite will incorporate various improvements to provide greater accuracy, increased signal and enhanced performance for GPS users around the world."

The new, advances satellites are also more resistant to jamming than previous models were.

Space.com partner Spaceflight Now will provide up-to-the-minute information on tonight's launch through their Mission Status Center for GPS 2F-7. Space fans can also follow United Launch Alliance's Twitter page for updates from the spaceflight company during the launch.

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Miriam Kramer
Staff Writer

Miriam Kramer joined Space.com as a Staff Writer in December 2012. Since then, she has floated in weightlessness on a zero-gravity flight, felt the pull of 4-Gs in a trainer aircraft and watched rockets soar into space from Florida and Virginia. She also served as Space.com's lead space entertainment reporter, and enjoys all aspects of space news, astronomy and commercial spaceflight.  Miriam has also presented space stories during live interviews with Fox News and other TV and radio outlets. She originally hails from Knoxville, Tennessee where she and her family would take trips to dark spots on the outskirts of town to watch meteor showers every year. She loves to travel and one day hopes to see the northern lights in person. Miriam is currently a space reporter with Axios, writing the Axios Space newsletter. You can follow Miriam on Twitter.