National Reconnaissance Office Release #2-24

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 9, 2024

Office of Public Affairs

703-808-1198, media@nro.mil

NROL-70 Launches on Final Delta IV Heavy Rocket

Launch culminates 15 years of the rocket’s service to the NRO

CHANTILLY, Va. — The National Reconnaissance Office, in partnership with U.S. Space Force Space 

Launch Delta 45, Space Systems Command, and United Launch Alliance, successfully launched the 

NROL-70 mission today at 12:53 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Space 

Force Station in Florida. This launch marks the end of an era as it is the final Delta IV Heavy rocket and 

the end of the Delta program. 

The NROL-70 mission puts into orbit a national security payload that will deliver critical space-based 

information to our nation’s warfighters, intelligence analysts, and decision makers. It is the latest asset in 

the NRO’s ongoing initiative to develop the most capable, diverse, and resilient overhead constellation in 

its history.

“All of our missions are important, but this one feels even more special,” said Dr. Chris Scolese, director 

of the NRO. “The launch of the final Delta IV Heavy marks the end of one era and the beginning of a new 

one. As our mission needs evolve, we are excited to be developing innovative partnerships that allow for 

new launch vehicles and new launch locations. This will enhance our resilience by providing more 

options for putting critical capabilities into orbit.” 

The Delta IV Heavy was built by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed 

Martin. Twelve of these rockets have carried NRO missions, starting with NROL-26, which launched 

from Cape Canaveral on Jan. 17, 2009. During the NRO’s 15-year history with the Delta IV Heavy, seven 

missions, including NROL-70, launched from Cape Canaveral; and five missions launched from 

Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, the most recent being NROL-91 in 2022. The broader Delta 

program began in the late 1950s and launched its first space vehicle in August 1960.

"Launching the last Delta IV is bittersweet for me,” said Col. Eric Zarybnisky, director of NRO’s Office 

of Space Launch. “I was part of the NROL-22 team that launched the first Delta IV for the NRO. Since 

that time, the Delta IV has put amazing capability on orbit for this nation.”

Millions of people depend on the information the NRO provides. The Department of Defense and 

Intelligence Community depend on NRO capabilities for national security, and civilian customers rely on 

information for priorities like assessing damage from natural disasters, predicting climate change, and 

helping relief agencies determine how and where to deliver humanitarian aid. Learn more at NRO.gov. 

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Since 1961, the NRO has been at the forefront of innovation – developing, acquiring, launching, and 

operating the nation’s intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance satellites to secure and expand 

America’s advantage in space. We are building a diversified and resilient architecture of spacecraft and 

ground systems designed to meet the challenges of an evolving space environment amid increasing global 

competition. We are accelerating innovation and leveraging strategic partnerships, driven by a diverse 
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and highly skilled workforce. At the NRO, we “See It, Hear It, Sense It” so our nation’s leaders and 

policymakers have the critical information they need, right when they need it.