But 10 years before Sputnik would ignite the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union, V-2 rockets taken from Nazi Germany after World War 2 were fired from White Sands Missile Range.

Now, 80 years to the week since the last V-2 launch of World War II, Germany again has a homegrown liquid-fueled rocket on the launch pad. This time, it's for a much different purpose.

A secret military payload has reached orbit aboard an Atlas V rocket, which launched Tuesday morning from Florida on a classified mission for the U.S. Space Force.. The mysterious mission marks ...