Vulcan Rocket's Debut Launch Crucial for ULA's Future

Overview

• The first launch of the new Vulcan rocket by the United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, is set to take place at Cape Canaveral next week.
• The mission will carry a moon lander aiming to make the first U.S. lunar soft landing in half a century, using engines supplied by Jeff Bezos' space firm Blue Origin for the first time.
• The successful launch could prove vital to plans by Boeing and Lockheed Martin to sell their joint venture, ULA.
• The Vulcan rocket will replace ULA's current Atlas V rocket, which has drawn criticism for its Russian-imported engines.
• The Vulcan rocket is priced lower than its predecessors at roughly $110 million per launch, seeking to reclaim market share from SpaceX's Falcon 9, which is priced at roughly $62 million per launch.