Rocket Launches Today (Dec. 16, 2025): Amazon Leo’s Atlas V Liftoff, China’s Ziyuan Mapping Satellite, and the Next 48 Hours in Spaceflight
Tuesday, December 16, 2025 delivered a classic “modern spaceflight” mix: a broadband-constellation push from Florida, a high-resolution Earth-observation mission from China, and a scrubbed smallsat launch attempt that underscores how tightly packed — and technically unforgiving — today’s global launch calendar has become. Spaceflight Now+2Spaceflight Now+2 Below is a comprehensive roundup of the spaceflights and satellite-launch headlines published on 16.12.2025, plus the most notable launches now lined up over the next day or two. Spaceflight Now+1 ULA Atlas V launches 27 Amazon Leo satellites from Cape Canaveral The day’s biggest U.S. launch headline came before sunrise on Florida’s Space Coast, when United Launch Alliance