Atlas 5 pictured on launch day

These views taken Thursday afternoon show the 206-foot-tall Atlas 5 rocket cocooned inside a mobile servicing tower at Space Launch Complex 3-East at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The rocket is employing a five-meter diameter payload fairing built by RUAG Space of Switzerland. It is the medium-length version of the fairing, giving the Atlas 5 additional volume for its classified satellite passenger.

See our Mission Status Center for the latest news on the mission.

Credit: Gene Blevins/LA Daily News

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