Gallery: Delta rocket launches with NPP

The NPP advanced environmental satellite to observe our home planet's weather and climate lifted off aboard the workhorse Delta 2 rocket at 2:48 a.m. local (5:48 a.m. EDT; 0948 GMT) from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.

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

Photo credit: Ben Cooper/Spaceflight Now