Firefly Aerospace launches its 4th Alpha rocket

The rocket, designated FLTA006 by Firefly Aerospace, carried a technology demonstration for Lockheed Martin’s LM400 Technology Demonstration (Tech Demo) satellite bus. The mission, dubbed ‘Message in a Booster,’ lifted off at the beginning of the Tuesday launch window at 6:37 a.m. PDT (9:37 a.m. EDT, 1337 UTC).

The Ocula imaging service will be built into the Elytra orbital vehicle launching as part of Blue Ghost Mission 2 in 2026.

The lunar operation marks the longest commercial mission on the Moon to date. Firefly Aerospace is in the midst of preparing for its next trip to the Moon, which is set to launch in 2026.