Latest news with #VulcanRocket
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
What to know: ULA Vulcan rocket to launch national security mission from Cape Canaveral
It's been awhile since Florida has seen a Vulcan rocket launch, but United Launch Alliance is pushing ahead to break that drought. While an official launch date is yet to come, ULA has announced the upcoming USSF-106 mission for the Space Force. The company has also teased photos of the red and white Vulcan rocket in the process of being stacked for launch. The long awaited liftoff will be from Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. As it is a national security mission, the payload remains undisclosed. When did a Vulcan last launch? How long has it been since we've seen this rocket? The last Vulcan launch was the Space Force certification flight in October 2024. Now that the new rocket has been cleared to fly national security payloads, the Space Coast awaits a launch date for this rocket's third flight. "From its inception, the Vulcan rocket was designed to deliver heavy payloads to any orbit. The upcoming USSF-106 mission utilizes this capability with Centaur V launching a multi-manifest U.S. national security payload directly to geosynchronous orbit for the Space Force," United Launch Alliance posted to its website July 15. The Centaur V is the Vulcan's upper stage, which is designed to reach unusual orbits for these national security missions. "The basic architecture of the rocket is really focused on these unique orbits," ULA CEO Tory Bruno told reporters in March. "An example would be directly injecting into geosynchronous orbit − a mission really the government does." A geosynchronous orbit is one which orbits alongside Earth's 24-hour rotation, with the spacecraft staying above the same longitude. The first time a Vulcan launched was in January 2024. What is the Vulcan replacing? While ULA still launches its Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, the Vulcan is designed to replace both Atlas V and the now retired Delta IV. It will become ULA's main workhorse rocket. On top of missions for the Space Force, Vulcan will also fly payloads such as Amazon's Kuiper internet satellites. The long awaited Dream Chaser space plane is also on the manifest, but no launch day yet. Vulcan is designed to fly with two, four, or six solid rocket boosters, or none at all. ULA says to look for four solid rocket boosters propelling this upcoming mission off the launch pad. What happened during the ULA Vulcan rocket launch in Florida last fall? During Vulcan's last launch in October 2024, sparks were seen by spectators approximately 38 seconds into the flight. It was later revealed that an issue within one of the solid rocket boosters caused the light show. The issue did not impact the mission, with the payload reaching orbit. The incident was investigated by ULA to understand the root cause. In March 2025, the Vulcan rocket received certification from the U.S. Space Force to fly national security missions. When is the next Florida launch? Is there a launch today? Upcoming SpaceX, NASA, ULA rocket launch schedule at Cape Canaveral Be sure to follow the FLORIDA TODAY Space Team for the latest from Cape Canaveral. Brooke Edwards is a Space Reporter for Florida Today. Contact her at bedwards@ or on X: @brookeofstars. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: What to know: ULA Vulcan rocket to launch mission from Cape Canaveral Solve the daily Crossword
UPI
23-06-2025
- Science
- UPI
ULA, Amazon launch second batch of satellites on Atlas V rocket
June 23 (UPI) -- United Launch Alliance on Monday launched an Atlas V rocket carrying satellites for Amazon's Internet constellation. The Atlas V rocket launched from the Florida Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Monday, at 6:54 a.m. EDT, carrying 27 satellites to become part of its Project Kuiper constellation, which aims to provide Internet service to customers worldwide. "We are proud to continue our strong partnership with Amazon and empower their mission to bridge the digital divide through reliable satellite technology," said Gary Wentz, ULA vice president of Government and Commercial Programs. "ULA, working as a catalyst to global connectivity in collaboration with Amazon, enables delivery of these critical satellites designed to drive innovation and connect the world." ULA is set to conduct six more launches carrying Project Kuiper satellites before ramping up to its "next-generation" Vulcan Rocket as it aims to build out a constellation of 3,200 satellites. The process is set to be completed through about 80 more total launches over the next several years. Project Kuiper aims to compete with SpaceX's Starlink, which is currently the largest Internet satellite constellation with more than 7,600 operational satellites in low Earth orbit. China is also working on two different mega constellations, Guowang and Qianfan which are both planning on featuring 10,000 satellites. ULA's next launch is for the U.S. Space Force, USSF-106 the first Vulcan Mission.
