The Peregrine lunar lander is scheduled to launch atop a new United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan Centaur rocket. This launch is set for January 8, 2024, at 2:18 a.m. EST from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
United Launch Alliance (ULA) hoists the Certification-1 (Cert-1) payloads atop the Vulcan rocket in the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) adjacent to Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo courtesy of United Launch Alliance.
United Launch Alliance announced today that they have concluded their Launch Readiness Review for the maiden launch of their Vulcan rocket and that the mission has been cleared to proceed to its planned liftoff at 2:18 am EST on Monday, January 8th. They also added that the weather at liftoff time currently has only a 15% Probability of Violation at launch time, meaning that forecasters are calling for an 85% chance of acceptable launch conditions. The new rocket will carry the Astrobiotics Peregrine lunar lander built under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program and a secondary payload of memorials for Celestis.
Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander is encapsulated in the payload fairing, or nose cone, of United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket on Nov. 21, 2023, at Astrotech Space Operations Facility near the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Photo: NASA
2023 ended on a high note for NASA with the dual launches of a Falcon Heavy containing the X-37B space plane and a Falcon 9 Starlink mission less than three hours later. That’s a hard act to beat, but now all eyes are turning to another major launch set for January 8th.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan Certification-1 (Cert-1) rocket sits atop Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Photo credit: United Launch Alliance
Tory Bruno, CEO of United Launch Alliance (ULA) has announced that the Wet Dress Rehearsal of the company’s new Vulcan booster was completed successfully on December 12, clearing the way for the rocket’s inaugural launch on Jan 8, 2024.
A pelican, oblivious to ULA’s new Vulcan rocket being fueled during a wet dress rehearsal, continues its flight plan undisturbed. Image by Richard P Gallagher
Cape Canaveral, FL. Yesterday’s wet dress rehearsal of the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan rocket was a significant event in the lead-up to its inaugural launch. The Vulcan rocket was rolled out to Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on December 6, 2023, in preparation for this extensive practice countdown.
ULA Launch in December Will Herald New Era in US Space Program
Artist rendering of Astrobotic’s Peregrine Lunar Lander. Credit: Astrobotic
Kennedy Space Center, FL – NASA’s ambitious plan to deliver over 40 payloads to the moon’s surface through its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative marks a significant milestone in lunar exploration.
An Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10C-X prototype engine undergoes hot-fire testing at Aerojet Rocketdyne’s facility in West Palm Beach, Florida. Credit: Aerojet Rocketdyne, an L3 Harris Technologies company.
Aerojet Rocketdyne, an L3Harris Technologies company, is planning to ramp up production of its latest variant of the venerable RL10 rocket engine at the company’s West Palm Beach, Florida facility. The company also plans to add staff at its South Florida facility to enable the higher pace of manufacturing the engine.
A Vulcan booster’s engines are test fired in this undated photo. Photo: ULA
In a Tweet ( or should we say “X”) posted on Thursday, United Launch Alliance announced that they are targeting December 24th for the first launch of their new Vulcan booster. The announcement comes after months of delays due to technical issues. The Vulcan booster will replace ULA’s retiring Atlas V and Delta IV boosters.
A ULA Atlas V sends two test satellites to orbit for Amazon on Friday, October6. 2023. Photo by Mark Stone for FMN
In the quest to bridge the digital divide and provide new global internet connectivity to underserved communities, Amazon has embarked on an ambitious venture known as Project Kuiper. This groundbreaking initiative aims to revolutionize satellite internet connectivity through the deployment of a vast constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO).
Project Kuiper, spearheaded by Amazon, seeks to address the challenges of delivering broadband access to remote and underserved areas around the world. With the ultimate goal of providing fast, reliable, and affordable internet, Amazon plans to launch a total of 3,236 satellites into LEO. These satellites will form a constellation capable of delivering broadband connectivity to even the most remote corners of our planet.
In a significant achievement for the United States Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the United Launch Alliance (ULA) has successfully launched the NROL-107/SILENTBARKER mission; marking ULA’s 98th launch for national security. This joint national security mission was carried out by an Atlas V 551 rocket, adding another feather to ULA’s cap of 157 launches with a 100 percent success rate. The not-so-silent Silent Barker lifted off at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Sunday, September 10, 2023 at 8:47 AM EDT, and drew an exceptionally large crowd of spectators, media and photographers all along the Space Coast!
