Tag: United Launch Alliance
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With a landmark launch, the Pentagon is finally free of Russian rocket engines
United Launch Alliance delivered a classified US military payload to orbit Tuesday for the last time with an Atlas V rocket, ending the Pentagon’s use of Russian rocket engines as national security missions transition to all-American launchers. The Atlas V rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 6:45 am EDT…
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A mid-September test flight of Vulcan could permit a military launch this year
United Launch Alliance is targeting September 16 for the second test flight of the new Vulcan rocket, and a flawless mission could finally set the stage for the first Vulcan launch for the US military by the end of the year. The US Space Force has contracted ULA’s Vulcan rocket to launch the majority of…
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Rocket Report: Firefly delivers for NASA; Polaris Dawn launching this month
Welcome to Edition 7.01 of the Rocket Report! We’re compiling this week’s report a day later than usual due to the Independence Day holiday. Ars is beginning its seventh year publishing this weekly roundup of rocket news, and there’s a lot of it this week despite the holiday here in the United States. Worldwide, there…
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Here’s why SpaceX’s competitors are crying foul over Starship launch plans
United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin are worried about SpaceX’s plans to launch its enormous Starship rocket from Florida. In documents submitted to the Federal Aviation Administration last month, ULA and Blue Origin raised concerns about the impact of Starship launch operations on their own activities on Florida’s Space Coast. Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ space…
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Rocket Report: China flies reusable rocket hopper; Falcon Heavy dazzles
Welcome to Edition 6.50 of the Rocket Report! SpaceX launched its 10th Falcon Heavy rocket this week with the GOES-U weather satellite for NOAA, and this one was a beauty. The late afternoon timing of the launch and atmospheric conditions made for great photography. Falcon Heavy has become a trusted rocket for the US government,…
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ULA will launch its second Vulcan rocket without a real payload
The second flight of United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket will take off in September with a dummy payload in place of Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser spaceplane, preserving a chance for ULA to begin launching US military satellites on the new rocket by the end of the year, officials announced Wednesday. Tory Bruno, ULA’s CEO, announced…
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Blue Origin joins SpaceX and ULA in new round of military launch contracts
After years of lobbying, protests, and bidding, Jeff Bezos’s space company is now a military launch contractor. The US Space Force announced Thursday that Blue Origin will compete with United Launch Alliance and SpaceX for at least 30 military launch contracts over the next five years. These launch contracts have a combined value of up…
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Blue Origin joins SpaceX and ULA in new round of military launch contracts
After years of lobbying, protests, and bidding, Jeff Bezos’s space company is now a military launch contractor. The US Space Force announced Thursday that Blue Origin will compete with United Launch Alliance and SpaceX for at least 30 military launch contracts over the next five years. These launch contracts have a combined value of up…
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Blue Origin joins SpaceX and ULA on Pentagon list for $5.6B in launch contracts
An artist’s conception shows Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket on the rise. (Blue Origin Illustration) The Department of Defense has put Kent, Wash.-based Blue Origin in the running for a share of up to $5.6 billion in national security space launch contracts, marking a first for Jeff Bezos’ space venture. The decision means Blue Origin’s…
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Boeing’s Starliner finally soars, but mission control reports more helium leaks
After years of delays, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft finally rocketed into orbit from Florida on Wednesday, sending two veteran NASA astronauts on a long-delayed shakedown cruise to the International Space Station. The Starliner capsule lifted off at 10:52 am EDT (14:52 UTC) on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Fifteen minutes later, after…