Tag: Electron
-
Rocket Lab to launch second orbital-class rocket as soon as next week
Rocket Lab’s second Electron rocket at the company’s New Zealand launch base. Credit: Rocket Lab Rocket Lab has scheduled the launch of its second Electron rocket from New Zealand as soon as Dec. 7, U.S. time, on a test flight that will aim to deploy three small CubeSats in orbit. The two-stage booster has a…
-
Second Electron rocket shipped to New Zealand launch site
File photo of an Electron rocket. Credit: Rocket Lab Rocket Lab’s second flight-ready Electron rocket has arrived at its launch base in New Zealand for the company’s first mission to deliver commercial satellites into orbit. The launch is expected as soon as December, once engineers and technicians complete several weeks of testing on the rocket.…
-
Rocket Lab finishes test flight inquiry, plans second launch later this year
The first Electron rocket took off May 25 from a launch base in New Zealand. Credit: Rocket Lab The inaugural test flight of Rocket Lab’s commercial small satellite booster in May fell short of orbit because a software programming error on a piece of ground equipment led a safety officer to send a premature termination…
-
Rocket Lab chief says maiden launch result maintains pace for commercial service
Video credit: Rocket Lab The result of last week’s inaugural test flight of Rocket Lab’s Electron satellite launcher from New Zealand, which reached space but was unable to enter orbit, positions the company for two more demonstration missions in the coming months before the privately-operated booster enters commercial service by the end of the year,…
-
Maiden flight of Rocket Lab’s small satellite launcher reaches space
Video credit: Rocket Lab The debut launch of Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket from a privately-operated base in New Zealand made it to space Thursday, proving the performance of major parts of the booster before faltering short of the velocity it needed to enter orbit, the company said in a statement. The U.S.-New Zealand company said…
-
Videos: Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket lifts off for first time
Rocket Lab’s Electron commercial satellite launcher lifted off from New Zealand on its debut test flight Thursday and soared into space on its maiden mission. The 55-foot-tall (17-meter) launcher did not reach orbit as intended, but Rocket Lab said the Electron successfully flew through the booster’s first stage burn, stage separation, second stage ignition and…
-
Rocket Lab waits for improved weather for test flight of new commercial launcher
The Electron rocket horizontal at Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand. Credit: Rocket Lab Worsening weather at Rocket Lab’s New Zealand launch facility forced officials to call off the liftoff of a new commercial satellite booster for the third straight day Tuesday. “Launch scrubbed for the day due to triboelectrification,” Rocket Lab tweeted Tuesday evening,…
-
Rocket Lab’s Electron conducts inaugural flight from New Zealand
The U.S.-based Rocket Lab corporation has entered the commercial launch market with the maiden flight of its Electron rocket on Thursday morning (UTC). The small-scale launcher will cater to the small satellite market, with low-end million dollar flights and its revolutionary engine design launching from the Māhia Peninsula from the North Island of New Zealand’s…
-
Rocket Lab delays debut of new launcher to dodge bad weather
Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket horizontal at Launch Complex 1 on Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand. Credit: Rocket Lab Rocket Lab, a company eyeing a market to launch small satellites, said Monday that bad weather at its privately-operated launch base on New Zealand’s North Island kept a commercial Electron booster from lifting off on its maiden test…
-
Small satellite launcher set for first orbital test flight this week
The Electron rocket at Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 on Mahia Peninsula on New Zealand’s North Island during a May 16 wet dress rehearsal. Credit: Rocket Lab The first test flight of Rocket Lab’s commercially-developed Electron launcher was held up by weather Sunday, but conditions could improve for a launch attempt Monday from New Zealand…