Tag: Rocket Lab
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Rocket Lab rolls out first Electron at LC-2 ahead of Q3 2020 launch
Rocket Lab has rolled out the first Electron rocket that will lift off from Launch Complex 2 (LC-2), the company’s launch site at Virginia’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS). Rocket Lab has also performed several tests on the rocket and ground equipment to verify pad systems. LC-2’s maiden launch, carrying the sole payload of the STP-27RM…
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Rocket Lab reports recovery test success
Aiming for reusability, Rocket Lab has demonstrated the mid-air recovery of a booster test article in a key test before rigging the first stage of the company’s Electron launcher with a parachute on missions beginning later this year. The company said the test in early March showed Rocket Lab’s concept of catching a descending Electron…
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Rocket Lab launches secret payload from New Zealand for U.S. spy satellite agency
After waiting out high winds, Rocket Lab’s low-cost Electron rocket launched a top-secret payload for the National Reconnaissance Office from New Zealand, halfway around the world from the U.S. spy satellite agency’s headquarters. Liftoff for the “Birds of a Feather” mission took place at 6:56 p.m. PT today (3:56 p.m. local time Friday), nearly three…
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Rocket Lab begins 2020 launch campaign with dedicated NRO mission
After successfully launching six missions and over 20 payloads to orbit in 2019, Rocket Lab conducted its first launch of 2020 using its Electron rocket. The mission lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand to carry the classified NROL-151 payload for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). The 14-day launch window is set…
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Rocket Lab announces NRO mission as agency diversifies launch providers
Rocket Lab has announced its first mission of 2020 – a dedicated launch for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). Their workhorse Electron rocket, launching from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand, will loft the classified NROL-151 satellite to an unknown orbit. The mission was awarded by the NRO as part of their Rapid Acquisition of…
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Small Satellite Launchers Poised for Big 2020
In 2019, American companies reached crucial milestones on the path towards launching small satellites. Firefly Aerospace and Virgin Orbit both secured partnerships and accomplished test objectives ahead of their respective rockets’ first flights this year. Concurrently, Rocket Lab improved its launch cadence and began evolving their Electron rocket as they look towards expanding their capabilities…
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Rocket Lab begins construction of a second launch pad at its New Zealand complex
An artist’s conception shows Rocket Lab’s Pad 1-B at the upper corner of its Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand. (Rocket Lab Illustration) Just days after officially opening its Virginia launch pad, Rocket Lab announced today that it has started construction of yet another pad at its original New Zealand home base. The new pad,…
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Rocket Lab to debut Virginia launch pad with U.S. Air Force mission next year
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated at 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) after press conference. File photo of an Electron rocket lifting off from Rocket Lab’s launch site in New Zealand, powered by nine liquid-fueled Rutherford engines. Credit: Rocket Lab / Andrew Burns & Simon Moffatt Rocket Lab plans to launch a research and development microsatellite mission for the…
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Rocket Lab’s Virginia launch pad opens for business, with Air Force as first customer
With Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck at center, dignitaries gather at Launch Complex 2 at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Virginia’s Wallops Island. (NASA Wallops Photo) Rocket Lab today celebrated the opening of a launch complex on the Virginia coast, half a world away from its first launch pad in New Zealand. The California-based company’s…
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Rocket Lab launches 10th Electron flight – critical step towards booster recovery
Rocket Lab’s Electron small satellite launch vehicle conducted its 10th Electron will lift off from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand on Friday, not long after the 10th anniversary of an extremely important event in Rocket Lab’s history. The flight, given the name “Running out of fingers”, involved a rideshare mission, lofting seven small…