/r/ula
News and discussion about United Launch Alliance
General Info
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- Check out the FAQ page and subreddit wiki for information about ULA, the EELV program, and much more.
Upcoming Launches
| Date, Time (UTC) | Payload | Vehicle |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-09 | Cert-2 | Vulcan Centaur 2S |
| 2024-10 | USSF-106 | Vulcan Centaur 4S |
| 2024-12 | USSF-87 | Vulcan Centaur 4S |
| 2024 Q4 | Kuiper | Atlas V 551 |
| 2025 H1 | ViaSat-3 EMEA | Atlas V 551 |
Updated 22 Aug. More details here.
Official ULA Pages
ULA and Tory Bruno on Twitter
Other Useful Links
Tory Bruno's AMAs:
Dr. George Sowers' April 15, 2015 AMA
Related Subreddits
Many more here.
This subreddit is fan-run and is not officially affiliated with United Launch Alliance. Visit www.ulalaunch.com for official news and updates.
/r/ula
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Take a Tour: Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
01:25 UTC
Tory Bruno on X: "Judging by the fog,… I’d have to say this is Vandenberg SLC3 receiving a brand new 70k gallon (265k liter) liquid hydrogen tank for #VulcanRocket’s Centaur V. Together with the Atlas tank, the pad capacity has more than tripled to 100k gallons."
00:20 UTC
Tory Bruno on X: "High energy tree topper. Centaur V is about to be hoisted on to CERT2 #VulcanRocket"
01:04 UTC
ULA appears to be targeting over 50% of SpaceX's 2023 launch capacity in the near term
So, we all know that ULA is targeting Vulcan launches of about twice a month or every other week (i.e. 24-26 times per year) and they are building additional infrastructure in order to support that (second east coast launch platform, second transport ship, second east coast integration building, etc). I tried to compare this to the last full year of SpaceX operations where they launched 96 times and compare what the payload capacity of each operation would be able to give you. Reference orbit is GTO (good middle ground between high energy GEO/TLI/interplanetary and LEO). Comparing # of launches is misleading because different rockets have different payloads capacities and different reusability regimes can both increase launch rate but diminish payload per launch to varying amounts. This is the spreadsheet that I came up with with a few assumptions about the mix between Vulcan booster number and a couple of the payload data points for Falcon payload in two scenarioes (Falcon Heavy 2R and Falcon 9 RTLS GTO payload have no good public payload numbers that I can find and thusly reasonable guesstimates are used as placeholders).
20:59 UTC
OTD in 2005: Atlas V AV-007 successfully launched NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Highlights from the ILS broadcast.
On August 12, 2005, Atlas V AV-007 successfully performed the first ever interplanetary mission for an EELV, carrying NASA's MRO. Interestingly, like New Horizons, NASA wasn't the only one covering this launch.
17:18 UTC
Vulcan Centaur's core began stacking today for launch on September 16
18:38 UTC
Tory tweet: "They have done an excellent job making the assembly simpler and more producible. So, there is no need to exaggerate this by showing a partially assembled engine without controllers, fluid management, or TVC systems, then comparing it to fully assembled engines that do."
00:27 UTC
Tory Bruno on X: "Another Bullseye and successful mission! Sorry we took a few days. New process: we do this in parallel with going through flight observations, in parallel with prep’ing for the next launch (CERT-2). Matching tempo through the rest of this year and up again next year"
11:21 UTC
Could Delta IV Heavy have Delta IV's srb's
Could ULA have put srb's on Delta IV Heavy to give it more thrust and would it increase the payload capacity ?
12:09 UTC
Atlas V 551 USSF-51 from Cape Canaveral Beach Resort
17:12 UTC
I love delta IV heavy and anime.
07:19 UTC
How would ULA human need to do rated a Vulcan or delta 4.
Just curious how to humanrate a rocket
22:12 UTC
ULA has introduced a new remote camera agreement policy that they claim has language that has always been conveyed. It has not. The terms of this boil down to limiting images taken on pad for editorial use only and nothing more. Not even social media usage/posting.
02:43 UTC
Atlas V 551, USSF-51 launch updates and discussion
An Atlas V 551 rocket is scheduled to launch the USSF-51 mission for the U.S. Space Force's Space Systems Command, carrying a classified payload to geostationary orbit. Liftoff is currently targeting Tuesday, 30 July at 10:45 UTC (6:45 AM EDT).
#Watch the launch:
ULA's webcast will begin at 10:25 UTC (6:25 AM EDT)
#Updates:
| Date/Time (UTC) | Info |
|---|---|
| 25 Jun | Atlas V's Common Core Booster was raised upright and installed on the Mobile Launch Platform at SLC-41's Vertical Integration Facility-G. |
| 2 Jul | The Centaur upper stage was stacked atop Atlas V's first stage in the VIF. |
| 26 Jul | ULA's Launch Readiness Review has been completed and current forecasts predict an 80% chance of acceptable weather for Tuesday's launch attempt. |
| 27 Jul, 16:14 | Atlas V has begun rolling to the pad at SLC-41. |
| 17:18 | Atlas V is on the pad. |
| 21:54 | Atlas V's Common Core Booster has been loaded with its RP-1 propellant. |
#Information & Resources:
Media:
Useful Links:
Updates on X from ULA, Tory Bruno, and /r/ULA
21:58 UTC
Atlas V USSF-51 Mission Profile
21:40 UTC
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