The long-awaited launch of United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan rocket is set to take place on Monday, Jan. 8, at 2:18 am EST (0718 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This first test flight, also known as Cert-1, is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative and will launch the Astrobotic Peregrine commercial lunar lander into a highly elliptical orbit more than 220,000 miles above Earth to intercept the Moon. The mission will also carry a Celestis Memorial Spaceflight Payload into deep space.
The fully assembled rocket was transported from the Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad on Friday, ready to undergo final preparations for the launch. The primary payload, Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander, is housed inside the payload fairing and is awaiting its ride to the Moon.
The pending launch is a defining moment for ULA and the Vulcan rocket’s development team. Mark Peller, ULA vice president of Vulcan Development, described the launch as a once-in-a-career opportunity and a culmination of years of hard work and preparation.
The Vulcan rocket, standing at 61.6 meters tall, is powered by a combination of Northrop Grumman GEM 63XL solid rocket boosters and Blue Origin’s BE-4 engines. The upper stage is powered by Aerojet Rockedyne-provided RL10C-1-1A engines. The maiden flight of the Vulcan rocket marks a shift away from the Russian RD-180 engines used on the Atlas 5 rocket.
The countdown to launch is set to begin on Sunday, and the launch complex will be cleared hours before liftoff as teams prepare to load the rocket with propellant. The launch is currently scheduled for Jan. 8, with multiple backup opportunities available in the following days.
The successful completion of the Cert-1 mission will pave the way for ULA’s participation in the U.S. Space Force’s National Security Space Launch program. After Cert-1, ULA aims to launch Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser spaceplane to the International Space Station on the Cert-2 mission.
The upcoming launch of ULA’s Vulcan rocket represents a significant milestone for the company and the future of space missions, with a pipeline of missions already planned for 2024 and beyond.