The brand new rocket, United Launch Alliance's (ULA) Vulcan Centaur, lifts off from Space Launch Complex 41d at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Jan 8, 2024, for its maiden voyage, carrying Astrobotic's Peregrine Lunar Lander. (PHOTO / AFP)

NEW YORK — The first American moon lander in more than five decades lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on a private mission early Monday.