ULA completes its 4th launch this year and last Atlas-5 launch for the Space ForceThough ULA’s Atlas-5 rocket still has a number of launches on its manifest before it is retired, early this morning the company successfully completed the last Atlas-5 launch for the Space Force, the rocket lifting off from Cape Canaveral in Florida.
This was ULA’s fourth launch in 2024, the most in a year for the company since 2022. The leader board for this year’s launch race remains unchanged:
74 SpaceX
31 China
8 Rocket Lab
8 Russia
American private enterprise however now leads the rest of the world combined in successful launches 87 to 47, while SpaceX by itself still leads the entire world combined, including American companies, 74 to 60.
Note: A Rocket Lab that had been scheduled for today has been delayed two days.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Though ULA’s Atlas-5 rocket still has a number of launches on its manifest before it is retired, early this morning the company successfully completed the last Atlas-5 launch for the Space Force, the rocket lifting off from Cape Canaveral in Florida.
This was ULA’s fourth launch in 2024, the most in a year for the company since 2022. The leader board for this year’s launch race remains unchanged:
74 SpaceX
31 China
8 Rocket Lab
8 Russia
American private enterprise however now leads the rest of the world combined in successful launches 87 to 47, while SpaceX by itself still leads the entire world combined, including American companies, 74 to 60.
Note: A Rocket Lab that had been scheduled for today has been delayed two days.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Imagine if SpaceX wasn’t around, and the USA (ULA and others) had but 13 launches to show for the year.
Every time I see a non-Falcon launch now I feel like something is missing… oh yeah, the landing! Funny how strange it is to see everyone else just throw their multimillions in hardware away, when it used to be so perfectly normal!
”Imagine if SpaceX wasn’t around, and the USA (ULA and others) had but 13 launches to show for the year.”
Aaahhh, no. If SpaceX weren’t around the NASA and Space Force payloads they launch would instead be launched by ULA.
”Funny how strange it is to see everyone else just throw their multimillions in hardware away…”
Not strange at all. It’s perfectly normal. No one else launches enough for reusability to pay for itself.
mkent
July 30, 2024 at 1:50 pm
”Imagine if SpaceX wasn’t around, and the USA (ULA and others) had but 13 launches to show for the year.”
Aaahhh, no. If SpaceX weren’t around the NASA and Space Force payloads they launch would instead be launched by ULA.
”Funny how strange it is to see everyone else just throw their multimillions in hardware away…”
“”””Not strange at all. It’s perfectly normal. No one else launches enough for reusability to pay for itself.””””
Chicken-egg. They don’t launch enough because they are throwing away expensive gear and passing the cost on to the customer.
Exactly.
Rocket reuse is still brand new from a historical point.
We who desire rapid space progress think it old hat.
It will take time.
Ariane 6s are not obsolete…just another launcher of the usual kind. Patience….
I won’t watch another ULA launch until they reverse their decision to prohibit photographers from selling photo’s featuring their launches. Fortunately, I won’t be missing much. ;-)