Cert-2

Certification-2 mission, the second of two launches needed to certify the rocket for NSSL missions. Originally scheduled to carry the first flight of Dream Chaser; however, due to schedule delays with Dream Chaser, ULA flew a mass simulator with experiments and demonstrations of future Centaur V technologies. Approximately 37 seconds into the launch, the nozzle on one of the solid rocket boosters fell off, sending debris through the exhaust plume. The booster continued to function for its full 90-second burn, but the anomaly led to reduced, asymmetrical thrust, causing the rocket to tilt slightly before the guidance system and main engines corrected and extended their burn by roughly 20 seconds to compensate. Despite the anomaly, the rocket achieved a perfect orbital insertion.