SpaceX Launches NROL-95 Spy Mission on Falcon 9, Landing Booster 8.5 Minutes Later
Updated
Updated · Space.com · Jul 30
SpaceX Launches NROL-95 Spy Mission on Falcon 9, Landing Booster 8.5 Minutes Later
3 articles · Updated · Space.com · Jul 30
Summary
A Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral at 3:10 a.m. EDT on July 30, carrying the NROL-95 reconnaissance mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.
The NRO disclosed almost nothing about the payload or mission activities, and SpaceX ended its livestream shortly after launch at the agency's request.
About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, the rocket's first stage landed back at Cape Canaveral, completing the seventh flight for that booster.
NROL-95 was the NRO's fourth launch of 2026; the previous three also used Falcon 9 rockets and supported the agency's proliferated architecture of hundreds of smaller spy satellites.