After a five-minute delay to avoid an orbiting object, a United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket carrying a Global Positioning Satellite launched successfully at 3:04 p.m.
The Air Force did not identify which of 8,000 orbiting objects caused the delay. Regulations require a 100-mile buffer zone between the satellite and any other orbiting object.
This was the 13th launch this year and the 78th successful Delta launch since the last accident.
Spacecraft separation will take place 68 minutes after launch.
Watch The Flame Trench for coverage.
"The spacecraft, designated GPS IIR-18M, is a modernized version of the Block IIR series designed to enhance the GPS constellation for military and civilian GPS users around the globe. The modernized series delivers increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti-jamming capabilities for the military, and a second civil signal to provide users with an open access signal on a different frequency." - Lockheed Martin
Space news and analysis from Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral 
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