Satellite launch vehicle redirects here. For the Indian rocket, see Satellite Launch Vehicle

A Saturn V launch vehicle sends Apollo 15 on its way to the moon.

In spaceflight, a launch vehicle or carrier rocketis 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.[1] 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