SpaceX Blasts First Surveillance Satellite to Orbit - Launch and Landing Photo/Video Gallery

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying classified NROL-76 surveillance satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office successfully launches shortly after sunrise from Launch Complex 39A on 1 May 2017 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 1st stage accomplished successful ground landing at the Cape nine minutes later. Credit: Ken Kremer/Kenkremer.com

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL – This week SpaceX blasted their first top secret surveillance satellite to orbit for America’s spy chiefs at National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) – affording magnificent viewing and imagery from the Florida Space Coast. Updated with more photos/videos – plus distinctly hear the sonic booms from pad 39A sending birds fleeing!

Liftoff of the classified NROL-76 payload for the NRO occurred soon after sunrise Monday morning, May 1, at 7:15 a.m. EDT (1115 GMT), from SpaceX’s seaside Launch Complex 39A on NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Less than nine minutes later, Space engineers managed to again recover the 15 story tall first stage booster by accomplishing a precise ground landing by perfectly targeting the vehicle for a propulsive soft landing at Cape Canaveral several miles south of the launch pad.

Blastoff of SpaceX Falcon 9 delivering NROL-76 spy satellite to orbit on 1 May 2017 for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. Credit: Julian Leek

The stunning events were captured by journalists and tourists gathered from around the globe to witness history in the making with their own eyeballs.

Check out this expanding gallery of eyepopping photos and videos from several space journalist colleagues and friends and myself – for views you won’t see elsewhere.

Click back as the gallery grows !

Landing legs unfurl and lock in place mere seconds before soft landing via propulsive firing of SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage booster engines at Landing Zone 1 on Canaveral Air Force Station only 9 minutes after launch from pad 39A on 1 May 2017 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida as seen from Exploration Tower at Port Canaveral, FL. Credit: Dawn Leek

The milestone SpaceX mission to launch the first satellite in support of US national defense was apparently a complete success.

Up close view of engine exhaust flames whipping around SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage booster during propulsive descent Merlin 1 D engines fire with 4 grid fins deployed after successful NROL-76 spysat launch for the NRO on 1 May 2017 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 1st stage descent culminated seconds later in successful ground landing at the Cape’s LZ-1 nine minutes later. Credit: Ken Kremer/Kenkremer.com

Flames whip around booster darting in and out of clouds during propulsive descent of the SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage firing Merlin 1 D engines with 4 grid fins deployed after successful NROL-76 spysat launch for the NRO on 1 May 2017 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 1st stage descent culminated seconds later in successful ground landing at the Cape’s LZ-1 nine minutes later. Credit: Ken Kremer/Kenkremer.com

Check out these exquisite videos from a wide variety of vantage points including remote cameras at the pad, Cape Canaveral media viewing site and public viewing locations off base.

Video Caption: SpaceX Falcon 9 liftoff with NROL-76 on 1 May 2017. This is the first launch of an NRO satellite on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and the 4th launch from Pad 39A this year. Credit: Jeff Seibert

In this cool video you can distinctly hear the Falcon 9 sonic booms eminating at LZ-1 from pad 39A sending birds fleeing aflutter in fright!

Video Caption: Falcon 9 sonic booms heard from Pad 39A. These two cameras recorded the launch of the NROL-76 satellite at https://youtu.be/kkKTe_61jk0
Nine minutes after launch, they recorded the sonic booms caused by the booster landing at LZ-1, 9.5 miles south of Launch Pad 39A on 1 May 2017. Credit: Jeff Seibert

Video Caption: SpaceX Launch and Best Landing – NROL76 05-01-2017. Best landing for spectators. Watch the nitrogen thruster’s steer the 16 story booster. Hear double sonic boom at the end. Audio is delayed from podcast. We can not match SpaceX and NASA tracking telescope coverage. Was really awesome for all who witnessed. Credit: USLaunchReport

NROL-76 marks the fifth SpaceX launch of 2017 and the fourth from pad 39A.

The NRO is a joint Department of Defense–Intelligence Community organization responsible for developing, launching, and operating America’s intelligence satellites to meet the national security needs of our nation, according to the NRO.