Tag: ULA
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Starliner OFT-2 launch makes it to orbit, heading to ISS
Nine months after valve issues caused its previous launch attempt to be scrubbed, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft has launched on its Orbital Flight Test 2 mission atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket Thursday. OFT-2 departed Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral at 6:54:36 p.m. EDT (22:54 UTC), bound for the International Space Station…
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As Centaur turns 60 years old, ULA prepares to evolve Centaur V
60 years ago, on May 8, 1962, Atlas-LV3C Centaur-A – designated Atlas Centaur-1 (AC-1) – lifted off from the newly-constructed Launch Complex-36A (LC-36A). AC-1 was the first flight test of the hydrogen-powered Centaur upper stage. Since the maiden flight of Centaur, the stage has flown on several different rocket families across six decades. Centaur has…
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As Centaur turns 60 years old, ULA prepares to evolve Centaur V
60 years ago, on May 8, 1962, Atlas-LV3C Centaur-A – designated Atlas Centaur-1 (AC-1) – lifted off from the newly-constructed Launch Complex-36A (LC-36A). AC-1 was the first flight test of the hydrogen-powered Centaur upper stage. Since the maiden flight of Centaur, the stage has flown on several different rocket families across six decades. Centaur has…
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Arianespace, ULA, Blue Origin discuss executing ambitious Kuiper constellation missions for Amazon
Amazon’s announcement of three launch contracts totaling 83 flights split across Ariane 6, Vulcan, and New Glenn represents the largest commercial launch block buy in history and will unite Arianespace, United Launch Alliance, and Blue Origin in a multi-year effort to deploy the Kuiper internet constellation. The contracts represent unique challenges to some providers and…
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NASA working through wet dress rehearsal, final major pre-flight test for moon rocket
With the arrival of SLS and Orion at Pad-B on March 18, engineers and technicians were busy making final preparations for Sunday’s critical last design verification test: the Wet Dress Rehearsal, or WDR. The test was scrubbed on April 3 before fueling due to an inability to provide positive pressure to the enclosed areas within…
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Methalox race likely to be won in 2022, but winner not yet clear
Right now, several methane-fueled rockets are in a race to orbit. With Starship from SpaceX, Vulcan from United Launch Alliance (ULA), and Neutron from Rocket Lab, all of the most active US launch providers are committed to using methalox-methane and oxygen. Upcoming launchers such as New Glenn from Blue Origin and the Terran family from…
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NOAA, NASA’s GOES-T weather satellite launches on ULA Atlas V
United Launch Alliance (ULA) has launched the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-T advanced weather satellite for the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). GOES-T launched on an Atlas V 541 from Space Launch Complex (SLC)-41 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS). The launch took place on March 1, 2022, at 4:38 PM EST…
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ULA’s Atlas V launches satellite-inspection mission for Space Force
United Launch Alliance carried out an Atlas V launch Friday with the third pair of GSSAP satellites for the US Space Force. Flying in its never-before-used 511 configuration, Atlas lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 2:00 PM EST (19:00 UTC) for a lengthy mission that injected the satellites into a near-geostationary orbit.…
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Vulcan continues path to its maiden launch as ULA turns 15
On December 14, 2006, a Delta II rocket launched from VAFB (Vandenberg Air Force Base) SLC-2 (Space Launch Complex 2) on the NROL-21 mission. This launch marked the first mission for ULA (United Launch Alliance) and the beginning of its 15-year history. The Delta rocket family has three more launches before being phased out with…
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ULA launches Atlas V on long duration mission for Space Force
ULA (United Launch Alliance) launched its 90th flight with an Atlas V rocket and its fifth and final mission of 2021. Launching from SLC-41 (Space Launch Complex 41) in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the STP-3 mission is lofting two experimental satellites for the United States Space Force. The mission will also test several new technologies onboard…