Vulcan was built by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin and is designed to replace two older rockets.
So far, only six countries have successfully launched more than 1 ton of equipment into space using domestically developed rockets. Now, a seventh, North Korea, has successfully done so, almost successfully.
The launch came five years and one month after Astra was founded in 2016. SpaceX required six years and four months and Virgin Orbit needed seven or more years to successfully reach orbit.
China's newest and biggest heavy-lift rocket was successfully launched today.
By launching a cargo of satellites into orbit and returning the rocket booster to a vertical landing on earth, Elon Musk’s SpaceX has reached the next major milestone in its quest to reduce the cost of reaching space, with the potential to disrupt the entire rocket industry.
To soar far away from Earth and even beyond the moon, NASA has dreamed up the world
Discovery News digs deep into our world's mysteries. Join us to explore current events and uncover the science behind the headlines. We Dig. You Discover.
