MAGNA, Utah – Sept. 10, 2023 – (PHOTO RELEASE) Five Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) Graphite Epoxy Motor (GEM 63) solid rocket boosters helped power the successful United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V launch of a national security payload today, designated SILENTBARKER / NROL-107, for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office and U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command.
The boosters provided approximately 1.85 million pounds of thrust to propel ULA Atlas V rocket out of Earth’s gravity. The mission is critical to national defense and will improve space domain awareness and satellite threat intelligence. In addition to the upper stage propellant tanks supplied by the company, Northrop Grumman will continue to provide GEM 63 rocket motors to support ULA’s Atlas V, and GEM 63XL rocket motors to help boost ULA’s Vulcan rocket, scheduled for its first launch later this year.
For more information about Northrop Grumman’s solid rocket propulsion systems and GEM motors, please click here.