Liftoff to orbit in under an hour: Space Force launches missile warning satellite 2 days ago The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket that carried the U.S. Space Force s fifth geosynchronous Space Based Infrared System satellite into orbit sitting on the pad at sunset Monday at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral. (United Launch Alliance) CAPE CANAVERAL SPACE FORCE STATION, Fla. The Space Based Infrared System provides 24/7 coverage of the globe, detecting the launch of missiles and providing a critical early warning of possible threats to American war fighters. For instance, the satellite system provided U.S. and allied forces a last minute warning to seek cover when Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles at bases in Iraq in January 2020. In 2019, the constellation detected nearly a thousand missile launches.