All articles tagged with #electron rocket
Rocket Lab successfully launched five satellites for a confidential customer using its Electron rocket from New Zealand, marking its 70th launch overall. The mission, called 'Live, Laugh, Launch,' remains largely secret, with the satellites placed in a circular orbit approximately 413 miles above Earth. This was the second of two launches for this customer, and Rocket Lab is also developing a larger, reusable rocket called Neutron.
Rocket Lab successfully launched a BlackSky Earth-observing satellite into low Earth orbit using its Electron rocket from New Zealand, marking the second of four planned launches for BlackSky's Gen-3 satellite constellation in 2025.
Rocket Lab is set to launch a commercial radar-imaging satellite, Strix-3, atop an Electron rocket from New Zealand, with a 40-minute delay announced. The satellite, developed by Synspective, will be deployed into a sun-synchronous orbit to capture consistent images of Earth's surface. The mission, named "Owl Night Long," marks Rocket Lab's fourth launch for Synspective, and the event can be watched live on Rocket Lab's website.
Rocket Lab successfully launched and recovered its Electron rocket, deploying four Space Situational Awareness satellites for NorthStar. The rocket's first stage was recovered from the Pacific Ocean for reusability testing, marking a step towards competing with SpaceX. Rocket Lab had previously attempted mid-air recovery with a helicopter but has now shifted focus to reusing boosters despite ocean submersion. With plans for a busy year ahead, the company aims to continue its success in small launch vehicle missions.
Rocket Lab successfully launched its first recovery Electron mission of 2024 from New Zealand, deploying four Space Situational Awareness (SSA) satellites for Spire Global and NorthStar Earth & Space. The first stage booster was recovered from the Pacific Ocean, marking Rocket Lab's ambition for reusing the booster entirely. NorthStar's "NorthStar-1" mission is the first batch of a planned 24-satellite constellation, aiming to enable continuous monitoring of satellites and nearby objects for early detection and warning of safety- and security-related phenomena.
Rocket Lab is set to launch four private satellites into orbit using its Electron rocket, with the mission dubbed "Four of a Kind." The satellites, built and operated by Spire Global, will provide space situational awareness services. After deployment, Rocket Lab plans to recover the Electron's first stage by bringing it back to Earth for a soft Pacific Ocean splashdown, as part of its efforts to make the first stage reusable. If successful, this will be Rocket Lab's 43rd Electron mission and its first launch of 2024.
Rocket Lab successfully launched a Japanese radar imaging satellite, the QPS-SAR-5, on the first flight of its Electron rocket since a launch failure three months ago. The launch, which took place from New Zealand, marked the tenth flight of the Electron this year and exceeded the company's previous record. Rocket Lab addressed the previous launch failure by improving ground tests and implementing measures to prevent arcing conditions. The customer for the launch, iQPS, is developing a constellation of 36 satellites for synthetic aperture radar imagery. Rocket Lab has a manifest of 22 Electron launches planned for 2024.
Rocket Lab successfully launched its Electron rocket, marking its return to flight after a failure in September. The mission, named "The Moon God Awakens," carried the Tsukuyomi-1 synthetic-aperture radar satellite for Japan-based Earth imaging company iQPS. The satellite will be part of a constellation aimed at monitoring fixed points on Earth every 10 minutes. Rocket Lab plans to have a total of 36 satellites deployed by 2025. This launch is the tenth flight of an Electron rocket in 2023, surpassing the company's previous record of nine launches in 2022. Rocket Lab has booked 22 launches for 2024, with nine of them being recovery missions. The company has addressed the issue that caused the September failure and implemented corrective actions to prevent similar failures in the future.
Rocket Lab's streak of successful launches came to an end as its Electron rocket failed to deliver a commercial radar imaging satellite into orbit. The failure occurred on the upper stage of the rocket, about two and a half minutes after liftoff from New Zealand. This marks the fourth failure in 41 Rocket Lab missions. The company is working with the Federal Aviation Administration to investigate the cause of the failure and plans to implement corrective actions before returning to launch. Rocket Lab's next mission, scheduled for this month, will be postponed as a result of the investigation.
Rocket Lab's 41st mission, carrying a radar imaging satellite by Capella Space, ended in failure when its Electron rocket experienced an unspecified anomaly two and a half minutes after launch. This marks the third mission failure for Electron, and the company is working with authorities to investigate the cause. Rocket Lab's stock dropped by 20% following the incident, and the next mission has been postponed as corrective actions are implemented.
Rocket Lab is set to launch its ninth Electron rocket of 2023, carrying Capella Space's Acadia satellite for its "We Will Never Desert You" mission. The satellite aims to provide high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery of the Earth. Meanwhile, SpaceX is scheduled to launch two Starlink missions, bringing the total number of Starlink satellites in orbit to over 5,000. The first mission will use a Falcon 9 booster for the 17th time, while the second mission will attempt to land the booster on the drone ship A Shortfall of Gravitas.
Rocket Lab successfully reused an engine on an Electron rocket launch, bringing them closer to reusing the entire booster. The rocket lifted off from New Zealand and deployed a Capella Space radar imaging satellite into orbit. The launch was initially delayed due to low igniter pressure in one engine, prompting Rocket Lab to replace the entire booster with a new one designed for recovery. The new booster included an engine that had previously flown on an Electron launch in May 2022, confirming its ability to be flown again. Rocket Lab aims to schedule the first reflight of a full stage booster after reflying a Rutherford engine.
Rocket Lab successfully launched an Electron rocket with a flight-proven engine for the first time, marking a significant step towards rocket reusability. The rocket carried an Earth-observation radar satellite for Capella Space and deployed it into orbit as planned. Rocket Lab's recovery strategy involves soft ocean splashdowns with parachutes, and this mission marked the eighth successful rocket return. The company aims to refurbish and potentially reflight the recovered boosters.
Rocket Lab is set to launch an Earth-observing radar satellite for Capella Space on July 30. The Electron rocket will carry Capella Space's "Acadia" satellite from Rocket Lab's New Zealand site. The launch will be Rocket Lab's eighth of 2023 and the company's 40th overall. Capella's synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites can capture imagery in all weather conditions, providing clear imagery day and night. This will be Rocket Lab's third mission for Capella Space, with four more planned launches to deliver Acadia satellites to orbit. If successful, the Acadia spacecraft will be deployed into a circular orbit 398 miles above Earth.
Rocket Lab is set to launch the final batch of NASA's TROPICS constellation, made up of five 3U cubesats, into orbit on its Electron rocket on May 27. The TROPICS satellites will provide hourly measurements on cyclone activity in the Atlantic and West Pacific regions, improving our understanding of how these storms evolve over time and intensity and direction forecasts for cyclones. The constellation was originally supposed to be made up of 12 satellites but was later reduced to just seven.