Summary

  • The maiden flight of the Vulcan rocket has launched a Moon mission called Peregrine which is expected to land on 23 February

  • The rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida, at 07:18 GMT (02:18 EST)

  • If the moon lander spacecraft touches down safely, it will be the first American craft to make a soft landing on the lunar surface since the Apollo era

  • The Vulcan rocket, operated by the United Launch Alliance company, is a primary competitor for Elon Musk’s SpaceX company

  • It will be launching many of America’s national security missions in due course

  • The Peregrine robotic lander has been contracted by Nasa to carry five scientific instruments

  • We aren't providing text updates from this page but you can watch the flight by hitting play at the top of this page

Live Reporting

  1. Watch the launch

    Prepare for lift off! In just under half an hour we’ll watch the Vulcan rocket make its first flight from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

    Thought to be a primary competitor for Elon Musk’s SpaceX company, the United Launch Alliance company’s rocket will launch at 07:18 GMT (02:18 EST).

    For its first flight, the Vulcan rocket is sending up a Moon lander mission called Peregrine - if it touches down safely, it will be the first American craft to make a soft landing on the lunar surface since the Apollo era. And it’ll be the very first non-government, commercial venture to do so.

    There won't be text updates here - but watch live by clicking the Play button at the top of this page.