Two days ago, America sent a spaceship soaring to the stars -- and we didn't need a Russian rocket to do it.

At 7:05 a.m. EST,Friday, Dec. 5, United Launch Alliance (working on contract to NASA), began the EFT-1 mission, sending anOrion spacecraft built by Lockheed Martin into space atop a Delta IV Heavy rocket built by Boeing . (Together, Lockheed and Boeing make up two halves of the NASA contractor United Launch Alliance, aka ULA.)

NASA promo shot of EFT-1 launch; YouTube still

The EFT-1 mission was scheduled to last just under four-and-a-half hours, and aimed to test the workings of America's first spaceship, capable of manned interplanetary flight. It also marked NASA's first step in a 20-year plan to put American astronauts on Mars sometime after 2030.

I won't keep you in suspense: The test was a success. After an initial one-day postponement from the Thursday target window, the rockets worked flawlessly in Friday's exercise. EFT-1 went up, orbited the Earth, then blasted higher, turned around, reentered Earth's atmosphere, and splashed down in the Atlantic right on schedule.

NASA promo shot of EFT-1 splashdown; YouTube still

So ... does this mean that America's reliance upon Russian rockets to put astronauts into orbit (and beyond) is finally at an end?

Not yet, but soon As you may recall, earlier this year a series of unfortunate events in Europe culminated in America imposing economic sanctions on Russia -- and Russia retaliating with a mortal threat to the U.S. space program. Unless America lifted its sanctions, Russia would cut off the supply of RD-180 rocket engines essential to ULA's ability to lift satellites into space. Simultaneously, Russia vowed to deny U.S. astronauts access to its Soyuz spacecraft -- currently the only craft capable of sending U.S. astronauts to the International Space Station.

Responding to these threats, Lockheed Martin promised to team up with an American rocket-tech company to develop a "next-generation liquid oxygen/hydrocarbon first stage" rocket engine capable of replacing the RD-180 on its Atlas V rockets. " Multiple " design contracts were signed in June, with the aim of getting a design approved this year -- and launching a prototype in 2019.

Then, in September, Lockheed announced that it has made a selection: Blue Origin, the privately held space-tech start-up owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, will develop a new liquid oxygen and liquefied natural gas (LO/LNG) "BE-4" rocket engine jointly with ULA.

Original post:

To Reach the International Space Station, Lockheed Martin Orders a Rocket From Amazon.com