WASHINGTON – United Launch Alliance is allowing the public to vote on the name of its new launch vehicle, offering initially three, and later five, names to chose from.
ULA opened voting on the vehicle, currently known as the Next Generation Launch System, March 23. The company initially offered three names from more than 400 proposed by ULA employees: Eagle, Freedom and GalaxyOne. The public can vote at http://bit.ly/rocketvote through April 6.
“Space launch affects everyone, every day, and our goal in letting America name its next rocket is to help all Americans imagine the future of endless possibilities created by affordable space launch,” ULA president and chief executive Tory Bruno said in a March 23 statement announcing the vote.
Bruno announced on Twitter March 25 that, while there is no formal write-in process in the online ballot, he had received enough additional selections he decided to add two names to the ballot. After a round of internal voting within ULA, Bruno announced that Vulcan and Zeus would be added to the ballot
ULA plans to announce the winning name April 13 at the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, where the company also plans to announce additional details about the vehicle’s design.
Internal voting underway on those that cleared legal: avalon, excalibur, helios, hyperion, odin, omega, paladin, prodigy, vulcan, zeus
— Tory Bruno (@torybruno) March 26, 2015
The results are in! Zeus and Vulcan have been added to the list. Name our next rocket. Vote early, vote often. http://t.co/jVp6iDiSWm
— Tory Bruno (@torybruno) March 26, 2015
