When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches the NROL-167 mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Oct. 24, 2024. (Image credit: SpaceX) SpaceX plans to launch another batch of U.S. spy satellites from California's central coast tonight (Jan. 9). A Falcon 9 rocket is set to lift off from Vandenberg Space Force Base tonight at 10:52 p.m. EST (7:52 p.m. local California time; 0352 GMT on Jan. 11) on the NROL-153 mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). SpaceX will webcast the action live via its X account, with coverage beginning about 10 minutes before launch. NROL-153 is the seventh launch servicing the NRO's "proliferated architecture," which the agency has described as consisting of "numerous, smaller satellites designed for capability and resilience."