Rollback of Delta IV Heavy NROL-15 Cape Canaveral AFS

ULA: Delta IV Heavy Mission

2 Million Pounds of Thrust at Lift Off

The Delta IV Heavy was designed by United Launch Alliance to be one of the most powerful launch vehicles ever built, utilizing pure liquid propulsion to generate over 2 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. Imperx cameras are built to easily withstand these kind of forces and have become standard flight hardware within the aerospace industry. They have been consistently relied on to record staging, deployment, and tank telemetry on all ULA Delta IV and Delta IV Heavy missions throughout the last 15 years. This includes standard national security flights like the deplohyment of the GPS-IIF-6 satellite in May of 2014 and the final flight of the rocket family, the NROL-70 mission in April 2024.

Watch the Launch with Imperx Cameras

Courtesy of ULA:

Delta IV Heavy NROL-70 Launch

Launch of Delta IV NROL-65, August 28, 2013 from Vandenberg Air

Delta IV Heavy:

In-Flight Metrics

Imperx Bobcat CCD Camera & Cheetah CMOS Lines

During the Delta IV Heavy flights, Imperx cameras were strategically positioned on the exterior and structural segments of the launch vehicles to provide real=time data to ground control. They were consistently relied on for the following:

Engine Performace

They captured the ignition and performace of the RS-68A main engines.

Booster Separation

They documented the exact moment the outer Common Booster Cores detached from the center core.

Stage & Payload Separation

Imperx cameras ensured the structural dynamics and clearance were perfact as the second stage and classified payloads deployed into orbit.

All Imperx Aerospace cameras use industrial grade components:

Extended Temperature Range: -40˚C to +85˚C
Shock/vibration Performance: >1000G/100G.
MTBF of > 660,000 hours @ 40˚C (Telcordia SR-332)
MIL SPEC 810F certified