SpaceX launches novel geosynchronous robotic servicing satellite on decade-long mission

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on July 21, 2026. Onboard was the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory’s Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites (RSGS), the main payload on Northrop Grumman’s Mission Robotic Vehicle spacecraft. There were also three Mission Extension Pods from Northrop Grumman onboard. Image: John Pisani/Spaceflight Now

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