Private company targets May launch for spaceship carrying Star Trek actress Nichelle Nichols ashes
United Launch Alliance recently announced it’s targeting May for the inaugural launch of its highly anticipated Vulcan Centaur rocket, which is expected to carry everything from satellites to human ashes into space.The Vulcan Centaur rocket has faced years of delays following the slower-than-anticipated development of powerful engines and requirements for when the moon lander can be launched.Under an updated timetable released by ULA CEO Tory Bruno, the more than 200-foot-tall rocket will take off on May 4, 2023, from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.If the launch is successful, the company plans to eventually replace the Atlas V and Delta IV rockets with the Vulcan Centaur.The rocket is said to be capable of launching 60,000 pounds of payload into low-Earth orbit and could one day be certified to carry highly sensitive satellites for U.S.