Propelled (8)
'propelled' is the definition.
(launching is a kind of propelling)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for launched that I've seen before include "Sent into space" , "Put a vessel in the water" , "Set a ship in motion" , "Propelled" , "Sent on course as uncle had" .)
(Other definitions for thrown that I've seen before include "Having been projected through the air" , "Confused - cast" , "Tossed" , "baffled" , "Disconcerted, confused" .)