CAPE CANAVERAL SPACE FORCE STATION — Early Thursday morning, United Launch Alliance (ULA) will be sending up satellites for the U.S. Space Force.
What You Need To Know
- ULA’s Vulcan rocket will be sending up USSF-87 mission from Space Launch Complex-41 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
ULA’s Vulcan rocket will be sending up USSF-87 mission from Space Launch Complex-41 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, stated the company, which is a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
The two-hour launch window opens at 3:30 a.m. ET to 5:30 a.m. ET, which means that ULA has during that time period to launch the mission.
Unlike SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, the Vulcan rocket is not reusable, and it will not land on a droneship or landing pad.
The Vulcan is the booster, while the Centaur is the second stage.
The 45th Weather Squadron has given a 95% chance of good liftoff conditions, with the only worries being the cumulus cloud rule.
About the mission
Not much is known about the mission, except that the USSF-87 mission will see numerous Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program satellites go to a geosynchronous orbit, so about more than 22,000 miles (35,406 kilometers) above the little round Earth.
“The USSF-87 mission will carry a variety of payloads that will promote the advancement of space technology to benefit future programs of record. The primary payload is the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP) space system, built by Northrop Grumman; a capability supporting the U.S. Space Command space surveillance operations as a high-performance, dedicated Space Surveillance Network sensor. They provide ‘neighborhood watch’ services in the geostationary Earth arena, improving flight safety for all spacefaring nations operating in that orbit,” the U.S. Space Force’s Space System Command explained in a press release.
Watch the launch
Anthony Leone
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