Firefly's Blue Ghost Mission 1 has taken a significant leap toward the Moon, with its successful second engine burn positioning the spacecraft for lunar orbit. NASA’s science and technology instruments aboard Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 are making steady progress toward the Moon.

A suite of NASA scientific investigations and technology demonstrations is on its way to our nearest celestial neighbor

Rocket Lab USA ( RKLB, Financials) announced its role in supporting Firefly Aerospaces Blue Ghost Mission 1, a lunar lander initiative under NASAs Commercial Lunar Payload Services program. Starting its 45-day trip to the Moon, the business said it uses Rocket Lab's MAX Flight and MAX Ground Data Software packages to enable its operations.

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lunar lander launched at 1:11 a.m. Wednesday from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the SpaceX rocket before separating an hour later. The lunar lander — part of a mission known as Blue Ghost Mission 1 or Ghost Riders in the Sky — will spend 45 days in orbit and 14 days on the surface of the moon.

The spacecraft built and operated by Texas-based Firefly Aerospace launched in the early Monday hours from Florida aboard a SpaceX rocket.

The moon has come into view for Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost spacecraft, which is scheduled to land on Earth's nearest neighbor a month or so from now.