Tag: CLPS
-
ULA marks success with the inaugural mission of its Vulcan rocket launching a Moon-bound robotic lander
The inaugural Vulcan rocket leaps off the pad at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The booster was powered by the first pair of BE-4 engines to fly in space. Image: Michael Cain/Spaceflight Now With the company’s future riding on it, United Launch Alliance’s first Vulcan rocket successfully put a commercial robotic…
-
ULA says its Vulcan rocket is finally ready to fly
The United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket is transported from the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) to Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral, Florida, in preparation for the certification mission (Cert-1). The mission will launch the Astrobotic Peregrine commercial lunar lander, as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, into a highly elliptical orbit more…
-
NASA discusses Moon-bound science as ULA’s Vulcan rocket gets go ahead for Jan. 8 launch
The payload for the Certification-1 (Cert-1) flight test on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vulcan rocket is encapsulated inside its payload fairing in preparation for launch. The mission will launch the first Astrobotic Peregrine commercial lunar lander, as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, into a highly elliptical orbit more than 220,000…
-
Intuitive Machines targets launch to the Moon in mid-January
The completed Nova-C lander for the IM-1 mission is photographed in mid-October at Intuitive Machines’ facilities in Houston, Texas, ahead of it being shipped to Cape Canaveral, Florida. Image: Intuitive Machines The first lunar lander aiming for a touchdown at the Moon’s south pole has a new launch date. Intuitive Machines said Friday it is…
-
Intuitive Machines targets launch to the Moon in mid-January
The completed Nova-C lander for the IM-1 mission is photographed in mid-October at Intuitive Machines’ facilities in Houston, Texas, ahead of it being shipped to Cape Canaveral, Florida. Image: Intuitive Machines The first lunar lander aiming for a touchdown at the Moon’s south pole has a new launch date. Intuitive Machines said Friday it is…
-
It’s crunch time for companies building NASA’s commercial lunar landers
Within a few months, NASA may celebrate the first successful landing of an American spacecraft on the Moon in more than 50 years. This would be an immense confidence boost for commercial startups with an eye on the nascent market for lunar missions. It would also signal to NASA that it can rely on commercial…
-
Intuitive Machines says it is ready to fly to the Moon
A Houston-based company that is one of several US firms building private lunar landers, Intuitive Machines, says its 3-meter-tall Nova-C lander is finally ready to take to the skies. “Our Nova-C lander is completely built,” said Steve Altemus, co-founder and chief executive of Intuitive Machines, in an earnings call on Monday. “We will deliver a…
-
ULA test-fires first Vulcan rocket at Cape Canaveral
Watch replay of our live coverage of the Flight Readiness Firing for United Launch Alliance’s first Vulcan Centaur rocket at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Follow us on Twitter. [tabby title=”SFN Live”] [tabbyending] EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated June 12 to change reference to igniters, which are not single use. United Launch Alliance’s first Vulcan Centaur rocket completed…
-
ULA delays Vulcan test-firing to troubleshoot engine ignition system
ULA stacked the first stage for the first Vulcan rocket test flight onto a mobile launch platform Jan. 25 inside the Vertical Integration Facility at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Credit: United Launch Alliance United Launch Alliance called off a test-firing of the company’s first flight-rated Vulcan Centaur rocket at Cape Canaveral Thursday to troubleshoot…
-
First Vulcan rocket rolls back to hangar for ‘adjustments’ prior to test-firing
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated May 17 with additional Tory Bruno comments. United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket rolls out to Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral on May 11. Credit: United Launch Alliance United Launch Alliance’s first Vulcan rocket was filled with methane and liquid oxygen propellants at Cape Canaveral last week for a tanking test, but…