{"id":24688,"date":"2022-02-28T23:42:12","date_gmt":"2022-02-28T15:42:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/rocket-labs-the-owls-night-continues-makes-first-launch-from-lc-1b-at-mahia\/"},"modified":"2022-02-28T23:42:12","modified_gmt":"2022-02-28T15:42:12","slug":"rocket-labs-the-owls-night-continues-makes-first-launch-from-lc-1b-at-mahia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/rocket-labs-the-owls-night-continues-makes-first-launch-from-lc-1b-at-mahia\/","title":{"rendered":"Rocket Lab\u2019s The Owl\u2019s Night Continues makes first launch from LC-1B at Mahia"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Rocket Lab has conducted its first launch from the second launch pad at its spaceport in Mahia, New Zealand on Tuesday, in the second of four planned missions for the Japanese earth observation company Synspective.<\/p>\n<p>Tuesday\u2019s mission, <em>The Owl\u2019s Night Continues<\/em>, is a follow-on to the December 2020 launch named <em>The Owl\u2019s Night Begins,<\/em> which was also flown for Synspective. The flight lifted off as scheduled at 09:37 local time (20:37 UTC; 3:37pm EST on Monday) from the newly-finished Launch Complex 1B (LC-1B) launch pad, which started construction in late 2019.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>The payload for <em>The Owl\u2019s Night Continues<\/em> is Synspective\u2019s StriX-\u03b2 Earth observation satellite, equipped with an X-band synthetic aperture radar. It is the second demonstrator craft built by the company.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Rocket Lab - The Owl's Night Continues Launch - 02\/28\/2022\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MjfNJjTyfKY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\" name=\"fitvid0\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The 100-kilogram spacecraft\u2019s radar antenna is 5 meters long when deployed, and it is capable of imaging a 30-kilometer swath at 3-meter resolution in strip-mapping mode or a 10-kilometer swath at 1-meter resolution in sliding spotlight mode.<\/p>\n<p>Rocket Lab\u2019s Electron rocket will deploy StriX-\u03b2 into a sun-synchronous orbit inclined 97 degrees to the Equator, at an altitude of 561 kilometers.<\/p>\n<p>This is the first of two satellites Rocket Lab is planning to launch this year for Synspective, with another launch also scheduled for 2023.<\/p>\n<p>Space Technology<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>Technology News<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>NASA educational resources<path d=\"M7.59009 18.59L9.00009 20L17.0001 12L9.00009 4L7.59009 5.41L14.1701 12\" style=\"animation: initial !important; background: initial !important; border: 0px !important; box-shadow: none !important; color: inherit !important; cursor: inherit !important; direction: inherit !important; display: inline !important; fill: currentcolor !important; filter: initial !important; float: none !important; margin: 0px !important; opacity: initial !important; outline: 0px !important; overflow: initial !important; padding: 0px !important; stroke: initial !important; transform: initial !important; vertical-align: initial !important; visibility: inherit !important;\"><\/path>\n<p>     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n<p>Unlike optical imaging satellites, spacecraft equipped with synthetic aperture radar can observe Earth even through clouds and in darkness. Synspective plans to create a constellation of operational spacecraft to perform these observations while orbiting the Earth.<\/p>\n<p>StriX-\u03b2 and the upcoming StriX-1 commercial prototype satellite, which is scheduled to launch later this year, will serve as precursors to this constellation.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-84449\" class=\"size-full wp-image-84449\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1437\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-350x196.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-623x350.jpg 623w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-768x431.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-1920x1078.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/strix-b-prelaunch-1170x657.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\"><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-84449\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">StriX-\u03b2 undergoing final pre-launch preparations (Credit: Synspective)<\/p>\n<p>StriX-\u03b2 is one of a number of Earth observation satellites that have launched recently to carry out radar mapping missions, as demand grows for near real-time imaging of disaster areas along with agriculture, forestry, sea-level monitoring, and other uses. For Synspective, one use case is to observe Asian cities at the same time every day after the first six satellites are launched.<\/p>\n<h4 class=\"widget-title penci-border-arrow\">See Also<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>The Owl\u2019s Night Continues Updates<\/li>\n<li>Rocket Lab Electron Forum Section<\/li>\n<li>L2 Master&nbsp;Section<\/li>\n<li>Click here to Join L2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>From sun-synchronous orbit, the StriX-\u03b2 spacecraft will be able to observe the same spots on Earth at the same time every day, which will enable users to track any changes and trends at specific locations. The satellite can cover the Earth\u2019s surface, from pole to pole.<\/p>\n<p>The StriX-\u03b1 and StriX-\u03b2 demonstrators are the precursors to Synspective\u2019s operational satellites. The company hopes to have six satellites in orbit by the end of this year, on the way to building a full constellation of 30 spacecraft. The target date for completion of the constellation is not known at this time.<\/p>\n<p>Synspective\u2019s constellation is expected to allow wide-area, high-frequency observations of the Earth. Between Synspective\u2019s constellation and others like COSMO-SkyMed, China\u2019s Ludi Tance, and others, radar observations will become increasingly available for most spots on Earth, under multiple radar bands.<\/p>\n<p>Electron Launch<\/p>\n<p>Rocket Lab\u2019s Electron launch vehicle consists of two stages, with an optional kick stage to help insert satellites into precise orbits. It is designed to launch up to 200 kilograms to sun-synchronous orbit or 300 kilograms to other low Earth orbits.<\/p>\n<p>The Electron\u2019s first stage is equipped with nine Rutherford engines, using RP-1 kerosene and liquid oxygen as its fuel and oxidizer. The engines are 3D printed, with battery-powered electric pumps to deliver fuel to the combustion chamber. Rocket Lab is working towards making Electron\u2019s first stage reusable.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-84450\" class=\"size-full wp-image-84450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1920\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-350x263.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-467x350.jpg 467w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-1920x1440.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-prelaunch-1170x878.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\"><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-84450\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Electron is assembled ahead of Tuesday\u2019s launch (Credit: Rocket Lab)<\/p>\n<p>The Electron that launched StriX-\u03b2 into orbit had a red band painted on it, which meant it was equipped with recovery hardware. The recovery systems were tested as part of the development process; however, Rocket Lab did not attempt to recover the rocket\u2019s first stage on this flight.<\/p>\n<p>The first stage powers Electron through the early phases of flight. Two and a half minutes after launch, the first stage engines shut down, the stage separates, and the second stage ignites its engine.<\/p>\n<p>Tuesday\u2019s mission will use a larger payload fairing, optimized for Synspective satellites, which separated around the 184-second mark in the flight. The battery hot-swap, which saw the second stage transition from and then jettison depleted batteries, occurred around the 388-second mark.<\/p>\n<p>The second stage is equipped with a single vacuum optimized Rutherford engine, with a larger nozzle to make it more efficient at altitudes where the Earth\u2019s atmosphere is thin or negligible. Like the first stage, this stage is also fueled by RP-1 and liquid oxygen.<\/p>\n<p>Around 535 seconds after liftoff, Electron\u2019s second stage engine cut off, with the vehicle in an initial parking orbit. The kick stage then deployed the StriX-\u03b2 satellite into its proper sun-synchronous orbit. The stage will then deorbit a short time later to keep it from becoming space junk.<\/p>\n<p>New Launch Pad<\/p>\n<p><em>The Owl\u2019s Night Continues<\/em> was the first mission that Rocket Lab flew from its second launch pad.<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-1\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 564px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=Bubbinski&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-1&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1496501002660618240&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasaspaceflight.com%2F2022%2F02%2Fthe-owls-night-continues%2F&amp;sessionId=51dd52ee8cdedc96abacf39789d94e4bd0efe3e1&amp;siteScreenName=NASASpaceflight&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-14=\"true\" data-gtm-yt-inspected-21=\"true\" data-tweet-id=\"1496501002660618240\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>This new infrastructure will double the number of missions that can be conducted from the company\u2019s Mahia launch facility, allowing a maximum of 120 launch opportunities per year. Alongside the new LC-1B at Mahia, the LC-2 facility at Wallops Island, Virginia \u2014 in the United States \u2014 has also been built, giving Rocket Lab three launch pads on two continents thousands of kilometers apart.<\/p>\n<p>Although the world\u2019s first private launch facility now has two pads and increased capacity, it remains to be seen whether the crowded small satellite launcher market can support the full flight cadence that Rocket Lab wants. So far, Rocket Lab has flown 23 Electron vehicles, 20 successfully, over nearly five years. Its highest flight rate was seven launches in 2020.<\/p>\n<p><em>The Owl\u2019s Night Continues<\/em> was the first mission of 2022 for Rocket Lab. This is Rocket Lab\u2019s first full year as a publicly-traded company, and its focus has changed from strictly launch services to offering end-to-end services for customers \u2014 including building satellites.<\/p>\n<p>This has been reflected by the recent acquisitions the company has made, and the pivot is no doubt due to changes and competition in the small-satellite launch market which has seen competition from many sources including SpaceX\u2019s rideshare missions, which offer lower costs for its customers.<\/p>\n<p>As another example of change in Rocket Lab\u2019s focus, a new corporate logo was recently introduced that eliminated the rocket and replaced it with a stylized \u201cR.\u201d Rocket Lab has also begun the development of a reusable medium-lift launcher, Neutron, which is also planned to be rated to fly crewed missions. Such missions had previously been ruled out by Rocket Lab founder, Peter Beck.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-84448\" class=\"size-full wp-image-84448\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-dual-pads.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1360\" height=\"1019\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-dual-pads.jpg 1360w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-dual-pads-350x262.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-dual-pads-467x350.jpg 467w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-dual-pads-768x575.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/electron-dual-pads-1170x877.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1360px) 100vw, 1360px\"><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-84448\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Electron\u2019s two launch pads at Mahia (Credit: Rocket Lab)<\/p>\n<p>As Rocket Lab adapts to a changing and more competitive launch market, the company faces an important year in which eight missions are currently planned, including the CAPSTONE lunar mission in late spring and at least two flights for the US National Reconnaissance Office. A booster recovery by helicopter is also planned, and it is possible that the first reused booster could also fly this year, though that remains to be seen.<\/p>\n<p>Starting with <em>The Owl\u2019s Night Continues<\/em>, continued mission successes and development will be critical for Rocket Lab and its future as the small launch market continues to evolve, with the possibility of a shakeout in the sector in the near future.<\/p>\n<p><em>(Lead image: Electron lifts off to begin Tuesday\u2019s launch. Credit: Rocket Lab)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rocket Lab has conducted its first launch from the second launch pad at its spaceport in Mahia, New Zealand on Tuesday, in the second of four planned missions for the Japanese earth observation company Synspective. Tuesday\u2019s mission, The Owl\u2019s Night Continues, is a follow-on to the December 2020 launch named The Owl\u2019s Night Begins, which [&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":[545,2384,544,157,956],"class_list":["post-24688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-electron","tag-mahia","tag-rocket-lab","tag-sar","tag-synspective"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24688"}],"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=24688"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24688\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}