Oct. 3 (UPI) — United Launch Alliance is set to send its second Vulcan rocket into space Friday, weather permitting, though the details of the certification mission are largely under wraps.
“Highly proprietary, secret sauce. It’s going to be awhile before we share more,” ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno said in jest in a social media post.
This will be ULA’s second launch of the Vulcan rocket, and it’s planned for liftoff from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. There is an 80% chance of favorable weather during the three-hour launch window, which opens at 6 a.m. EDT, forecasters said.
The Vulcan will be launched with a payload dedicated to studying conditions for future Centaur 5 demonstrations and experiments, the company said.
Among other tests, Bruno said ULA will be watching how the Centaur 5 behaves at very low temperatures in space, assessing the rocket’s upper stage.
“We’ll also have experiments attached to this inert payload that will help us understand how to extend the duration of the upper stage and what the limits, practical limits, to that might be in the future,” Bruno added.
Friday’s scheduled test flight is required for ULA’s certification process with the U.S. Space Force.
ULA plans to share mission updates on its blog.