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Minotaur IV Used for NRO Mission from Vandenberg

Frank Wolfe

Wednesday, April 16th, 2025

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Minotaur IV Used for NRO Mission from Vandenberg

Pictured is lift-off of a Minotaur IV carrying the NROL-174 mission (Northrop Grumman Photo)

The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), U.S. Space Force's (USSF) Space Launch Delta 30, and USSF Space Systems Command's small launch and targets division launched defense and intelligence payloads aboard NROL-174 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., on Wednesday. Carrying the payloads was a Northrop Grumman [NOC] Minotaur IV rocket in what NRO said was the first Minotaur launch for NRO from Vandenberg since 2011. A decommissioned Peacekeeper ICBM supplies Minotaur IV with solid rocket motors for its first three stages,…

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