SpaceX Falcon 9 Launches Air Force's Best GPS Yet, Final One For 2018 [WATCH]

GettyImages-961537926 — SpaceX has launched the U.S. Air Force's most powerful GPS satellite ever built. In this handout image provided by NASA, the NASA/German Research Centre for Geosciences GRACE Follow-On spacecraft launch onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, Tuesday, May 22, 2018, from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The mission will measure changes in how mass is redistributed within and among Earth's atmosphere, oceans, land and ice sheets, as well as within Earth itself. GRACE-FO is sharing its ride to orbit with five Iridium NEXT communications satellites as part of a commercial rideshare agreement. Getty Images/Bill Ingalls

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has launched for the final time this year, sending the U.S. Air Force's most powerful GPS satellite into orbit.

On Sunday, Dec. 23, the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, according to Phys.org. This was the first GPS satellite launch for the Elon Musk-owned company. Breaking company record, this Falcon 9 rocket launch is SpaceX's 21st and final launch of the year.

The launch was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 18, but weather and technical issues forced SpaceX to postpone the flight. After the delay, the Falcon 9 rocket launch was rescheduled for Dec. 19, but it was once again delayed.

Air Force secretary Heather Wilson previously revealed that this next-generation GPS satellite is the best ever built, being three times more accurate and eight times better at anti-jamming than previous versions. The GPS III satellite, the first in a series, has been given the nickname Vespucci, after the Italian explorer who calculated the Earth's circumference to within 50 miles (80 kilometers) in the 15th century.

The technology of the GPS satellite was developed by Lockheed Martin, who is building the satellites at a facility near Denver.

The GPS III satellite will be more secure and versatile than its predecessors as it will have a stronger military signal that's harder to jam. This new technology will also provide a new civilian signal compatible with the navigation satellites of other countries. This would result in the improvement of accuracy as the civilian receivers capable of receiving the new signal will have more satellites to lock in on, Phys.org noted.

However, it looks like the satellite that was just launched into orbit does not have some of these capabilities. Some features won't be completely available until 2022 or even later. Government auditors said they are still in the process of solving the problems in a companion program to develop a new ground control system for the satellites.

GPS was developed by the U.S. military, which still designs, launches and operates the system. According to the Air Force, about 4 billion people around the world use GPS.

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