Top-secret US spy satellite blasts off amid mystery of what it will do

A Delta IV rocket carrying a payload for the National Reconnaissance Office lifts off from Space Launch Complex-6 at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., on Tuesday, June 27. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A rocket carrying a top-secret payload blasted off from the California coast yesterday. The Delta IV rocket lifted off from the Vandenberg Air Force Base, about 130 miles north west of Los Angeles.

The rocket contained some form of spy technology - thought to be a hi-tech replacement for America's aging fleet of radar satellites. It's not clear what capabilities the new generation might be armed with.

Observers think that the 'new generation' spy satellites would be capable of high-resolution scans even through cloud cover and at night.

Since the launch involved a classified cargo for the National Reconnaissance Office, no details were immediately available about whether it was boosted to its intended orbit. More...