United Launch Alliance’s new Vulcan rocket explodes on Space Force’s first sanctioned flight

United Launch Alliance fired its first operation Vulcan Rocket Tuesday, boosting two military satellites into space in the U.S. Space Force’s first flight of a new launch vehicle that will ultimately replace the company’s Atlas 5 and already retired Deltas.

Equipped with four solid-fuel strap boosters for additional liftoff power, the Vulcan’s two 198-foot-tall BE-4 engines tripped at 8:56 p.m. EDT, instantly propelling the rocket away from Pad 41 at Space Force Station Cape Canaveral.

Arcing over the Atlantic Ocean on an eastward trajectory, the Vulcan put on a spectacular sky lighting show as it roared through the air atop nearly 3 million pounds of thrust and a bright jet of exhaust visible for miles overhead.

All four strap boosters were abandoned about 90 seconds after liftoff, followed three and a half minutes later by burnout and separation from the Vulcan’s 109-foot-high first stage.

The two Aerojet Rocketdyne RLL10C engines, powered by Centaur Stage hydrogen, ignited and took over, but in accordance with standard policy for military missions, ULA ended its launch commentary at that point and the remainder of the flight was conducted in secret.

At least two satellites were considered on board: a fully classified spacecraft and an experimental satellite that will conduct tests of improved atomic clocks and navigation technology that could lead to more accurate, system-proof global system-like data for military and commercial users.

Both satellites were bound for geosynchronous orbit 22,300 miles above the equator, where spacecraft take 24 hours to complete an orbit, thus appearing stationary in the sky.

GPS satellites operate in 12,500-mile-high orbits, but the Navigation Technology Satellite 3, or NTS-3, will operate from its much higher perch using an advanced progressive array antenna that can electronically direct signals to receivers at multiple locations across wide regions.

It is the Pentagon’s first experimental navigation satellite since the launch of GPS precursors in the 1970s. Along with the NTS-3 satellite, designed and built by L3Harris Technologies, the program includes a ground control system and software-linked receivers that allow rapid reprogramming as needed for upgrades or to use different signals.

“GPS is an integral part of our lives today,” said Joanna Hinks, senior aerospace engineer with the Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico. “You’re probably all using it in ways you didn’t even realize throughout your morning.

“And with NTS-3, we’re going to experiment with a number of different technologies that look at how we can continue to evolve and augment GPS to ensure it remains the gold standard that our warfighters need.”

While the major objective of the flight is to launch the USSF-106 payloads, the launch marked a significant milestone for United Launch Alliance.

It was the third launch of the powerful new Vulcan after two test flights last year and the first to be “certified” by the Space Force to carry expensive national security spy satellites and other expensive military spacecraft.

“This mission is heading directly to geosynchronous orbit and will be one of our longest missions to date,” said Gary Wentz, vice president of government and commercial programs. “That’s the sole purpose of this vehicle. It was deliberately designed to support these missions doing a direct feed into GEO for the Space Force.”

The Vulcan replaces ULA’s already retired Delta family of rockets and the venerable Atlas 5, which is powered by a Russian-built RD-180 first-stage engine. Criticism of ULA’s use of Russian engines for launches of U.S. military satellites and NASA spacecraft helped fuel congressional push for a new U.S. launch vehicle.

Thirteen Atlas 5s are left in ULA’s inventory, all planned for civilian launches as ULA, a partnership of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, transitions to an all-Vulcan fleet.

Meanwhile, SpaceX dominates the global launch market with its heavy Falcon 9 and Falcon Triple Falcon 9 and triple-corse rockets. So far this year, SpaceX has launched 97 Falcon 9s.

But ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno said the Vulcan’s first stage, using high-performance BE-4 engines supplied by Blue Origin – owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos – and its high-power Centaur upper stage make the rocket particularly well suited for launching heavy military payloads into hard-to-reach orbits.

“It’s specifically designed for these exotic orbits that are primarily for the government,” he said. “And this particular mission is the quintessential example. It’s a direct injection to geosynchronous orbit. That means it’s a very, very long duration mission.”

He said the first step is, in fact, delivering the Centaur to space with a full propellant load “to go from Leo (low Earth orbit) to somewhere, like all the way to the Geo Belt, which is 20 times higher. And what that translates into capability (is) certainly more mass and more precision than is easily done by others.”

Although he didn’t mention SpaceX or its Falcon Heavy by name, or ULA’s retired Delta 4 Heavy, Bruno said: “If you’re a typical three-core heavy launch vehicle and … really derived from a vehicle optimized for this Leo mission, you’re going to have to have three cores to get out, and you’re going to have to spend all of them.

“And here’s the really complicated rocket science. You know, one core is cheaper and more efficient than three expendable cores. It’s literally that simple.”

This, coupled with the high-energy Centaur upper stage, gives ULA the ability to launch heavy payloads directly into high orbits without requiring satellites to use their own thrusters – and limited propellant – in transit.

ULA is expanding its ground infrastructure and plans to launch nine flights in 2025, reaching a rate of two per month by the end of the year. The company plans to launch between 20 and 25 flights in 2026.