{"id":18108,"date":"2019-03-28T23:38:15","date_gmt":"2019-03-28T15:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/rocket-lab-launches-darpas-r3d2-experimental-satellite-from-new-zealand\/"},"modified":"2019-03-28T23:38:15","modified_gmt":"2019-03-28T15:38:15","slug":"rocket-lab-launches-darpas-r3d2-experimental-satellite-from-new-zealand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/rocket-lab-launches-darpas-r3d2-experimental-satellite-from-new-zealand\/","title":{"rendered":"Rocket Lab launches DARPA\u2019s R3D2 experimental satellite from New Zealand"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_488638\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-488638\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-488638\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/190328-rocketlab-630x538.jpg\" alt=\"Rocket Lab Electron launch\" width=\"630\" height=\"538\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/190328-rocketlab-630x538.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/190328-rocketlab-768x656.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/190328-rocketlab.jpg 951w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-488638\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rocket Lab\u2019s Electron launch vehicle rises from its New Zealand launch pad. (Rocket Lab via YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Rocket Lab executed its first launch of the year from New Zealand today, sending an experimental satellite into orbit for the Pentagon\u2019s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.<\/p>\n<p>The company\u2019s Electron launch vehicle lifted off from Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand\u2019s Mahia Peninsula right on time, at 4:27 p.m. PT March 28 (12:27 p.m. local time March 29). Launch had been delayed for several days \u2014 first, due to concerns about a video transmission system, and then due to unacceptable weather conditions.<\/p>\n<p>About 50 minutes after launch, the Electron\u2019s kick stage successfully deployed DARPA\u2019s Radio Frequency Risk Reduction Deployment Demonstration satellite, or R3D2, into a 264-mile-high orbit..<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMission success! Great kick stage burn and final orbit. Perfect flight!\u201d Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck said in a tweet.<\/p>\n<p>The 330-pound satellite is designed to unfurl a 7-foot-wide antenna to demonstrate how large structures can be packed within small satellite-size packages.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Electron launches DARPA R3D2 mission\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/d2To1fIN6Ko?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" data-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-width=\"800\" data-height=\"450\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0px; width: 800px; height: 450px;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>DARPA\u2019s antenna is as thin as tissue paper but made of super-strong Kapton fabric. Over the course of at least six months, mission managers will monitor the antenna\u2019s deployment and performance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe antenna could enable multiple missions that currently require large satellites, to include high data rate communications to disadvantaged users on the ground,\u201d DARPA said in a pre-launch fact sheet.<\/p>\n<p>The mission is also aimed at demonstrating low-cost, rapid-deployment space operations: It took about 18 months to go from satellite design to launch \u2014 and DARPA\u2019s launch cost is $6.5 million, which is far less than the norm.<\/p>\n<p>Like Beck, DARPA declared the launch a success via Twitter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSpace will always hold a special place in our hearts at DARPA \u2026 and it\u2019s encouraging to see the launch ecosystem expanding,\u201d the agency said.<\/p>\n<p>Northrop Grumman was the satellite\u2019s prime constructor. MMA Design built the antenna, Trident Systems built R3D2\u2019s software-defined radio and Blue Canyon Technologies provided the spacecraft bus.<\/p>\n<p>Rocket Lab executed its first three successful orbital launches last year. Today\u2019s liftoff was the company\u2019s fourth liftoff. Its fifth is currently set for April. Rocket Lab plans to conduct 12 launches this year, and it\u2019s building a second launch site at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Airport in Virginia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rocket Lab\u2019s Electron launch vehicle rises from its New Zealand launch pad. (Rocket Lab via YouTube) Rocket Lab executed its first launch of the year from New Zealand today, sending an experimental satellite into orbit for the Pentagon\u2019s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The company\u2019s Electron launch vehicle lifted off from Launch Complex 1 on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1504,4745,1596,544],"class_list":["post-18108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-darpa","tag-electron-rocket","tag-new-zealand","tag-rocket-lab"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18108"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18108"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18108\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18108"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18108"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18108"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}