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United Launch Alliance is launching their first Vulcan Centaur rocket for it´s inaugural flight. The rocket will carry the Astrobotics Peregrine lunar lander, as part of the NASA Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, and the Artemis program. Vulcan's first stage is powered by BE-4 engines from Blue Origin, which also will be used on Blue Origin´s New Glenn Rocket. The engines run on methane and liquid oxygen. The second stage is a Centaur V engine, powered by two RL-10 engines. The configuration of this flight is referred to as “VC2S“. VC2 indicates, that the rocket will feature two GEM-63XL solid rocket motors attached to it. The S indicates the usage of the standard fairing. Peregrine is an Astrobotics lunar lander, delivering 16 customers to the moon's surface and several NASA payloads. The total mass of the payload is 1,283 kg. As a secondary payload, the mission also flies the Celestis Enterprise Flight. It contains more than 150 flight capsules with cremated remains, DNA samples, and messages of greetings from clients worldwide, that will be sent on a journey into space. Window opens: January 8th at 2:18AM EST (07:18 UTC) Window closes: January 8th at 3:03AM EST (08:03 UTC) Current T0: January 8th at 2:18AM EST (07:18 UTC) Backup opportunities: Jan 9th, 10th, and 11th between 12:11AM EST and 12:15AM EST Mission: Vulcan's first certification launch with Astrobotic's Peregrine Lander and Celestis Memorial from Space Launch Complex 41, Florida. Target orbit: Trans-Lunar Injection for Peregrine with a perigee of , a characteristic energy of , and an inclination of degrees. Centaur will perform a final burn to heliocentric orbit. Booster serial number: VC001 Rocket configuration: VC2S, Vulcan Centaur with 2 SRBs and a small 5m diameter fairing Rocket trajectory: Straight east from the Cape Stats: · ULA's 158th launch overall and its 1st launch of the year. · Vulcan's 1st launch, 1st launch in VC2S configuration. · ULA's 75th launch from SLC-41, 1st Vulcan launch from SLC-41. · 110th overall launch from SLC-41. NSF forum link: NSF mission article: ULA mission updates website: ULA's payload website: ⚡ Become a member of NASASpaceflight's channel for exclusive discord access, fast turnaround clips, and other exclusive benefits. Your support helps us continue our 24/7 coverage. ⚡ 🔍 If you are interested in using footage captured by this stream, please review our content use policy:
