NOAA satellite launched

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - A United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket successfully boosted a NOAA satellite into orbit Friday. The satellite will be used to track fast-breaking storms and monitor climate changes. A Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne RS-27A engine powered the rocket, and three Alliant Techsystems GEM-40 solid propulsion strap-on boosters ignited with the first-stage main engine. (Source: Pratt & Whitney, ATK, 02/06/09) Gulf Coast note: Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne has a facility at Stennis Space Center, Miss.; ATK has an operation in Shalimar, Fla.