​A new rocket called Vulcan Centaur lifted off from Cape Canaveral on Monday morning and sent a probe called Peregrine, developed by a startup called Astrobotic, into space. The mission is for the probe to reach the lunar surface on February 23, which would be the first time Americans have done so in 51 years. The mission does NOT have a human crew. What is so special about the Vulcan rocket?

The 62-meter-tall Vulcan rocket was developed by United Launch Alliance (ULA) – a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin – and is designed to replace two of the company’s rockets: Altas V and Delta IV.

These companies built very expensive rockets, and SpaceX was able to offer much better prices for commercial launches. With the Vulcan rocket, ULA hopes to capture a significant share of the commercial launch market and has ordered 70 Vulcan launches, including 38 for Amazon.

The launch is also important to Jeff Bezos, as two of the BE-4’s first stage engines are being developed by Blue Origin. This type of engine, the BE-4, will also be used on Blue Origin’s New Glenn megarocket, which is due to make its first test flight in 2024.

The rocket on Monday sent the Peregrine lander, which was developed by Astrobotic, a startup contracted by NASA to deliver scientific material to the lunar surface, on its way to the moon. The contract is worth 108 million dollars, and the probe must land in a region called Sinus Viscositatis (Bay of Viscosity).

People hope that in the future sending cargo to the moon will become commonplace and happen very often.

The Peregrine spacecraft separated from the Vulcan rocket 50 minutes after launch and began its journey to the Moon.

If the probe succeeds in a controlled soft landing, Astrobotic will become the first private company to achieve such a major feat: carrying cargo to the surface of the Moon.

The Peregrine probe has 20 scientific instruments on board, five of which belong to NASA, designed to study the behavior of frozen water on the Moon. The mission is controversial because it is also carrying the ashes of some Navajo Indians, and the Navajo population has protested, saying the moon is sacred and placing human remains there is desecration.