launch vehicle

Satellite launch vehicle redirects here. For the Indian rocket, see Indian Satellite Launch Vehicle In spaceflight, a launch vehicle or carrier rocket is a rocket used to carry a payload from the Earth's surface into outer space. A launch system includes the launch vehicle, the launch pad and other infrastructure. Usually the payload is an artificial satellite placed into orbit, but some spaceflights are  sub-orbital while others enable spacecraft to  escape Earth orbit entirely. A launch vehicle which carries its payload on a suborbital trajectory is often called a sounding rocket.
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