The company’s Blue Ghost moon lander before shipping out for launch.
Firefly Aerospace
Another American company, Texas-based rocket and spacecraft builder Firefly Aerospace, is moon-bound.
Firefly’s “Blue Ghost” cargo lander launched from Florida early Wednesday morning on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket to begin a 45-day trip.
The space transportation company’s first moon mission comes as it looks to expand into the nascent, NASA-led market for lunar services.
“We’re now fully focused on execution as we look to complete our on-orbit operations, softly touch down on the lunar surface, and pave the way for humanity’s return to the Moon,” Firefly CEO Jason Kim said in a statement after the launch.
Firefly is best known for its Alpha rockets, which launch satellites into orbit. But the company in recent years expanded into building lunar landers and space tugs.
The nearly 7-foot-tall lander, named Blue Ghost after a rare…
