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\n<\/del>Due to the classified nature of the mission, very few details have been made public. The size, orbit, and purpose of the NROL-151 payload are unknown.<\/p>\n
In the days leading up to the flight, the Electron rocket was rolled out to the pad at Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand for a wet dress rehearsal, which was completed successfully on January 24. A wet dress rehearsal is a run-through of the pre-launch countdown and vehicle fueling procedures, which allows the launch teams to verify the rocket\u2019s health before flight.<\/p>\n
See Also<\/h4>\n\n- Electron Flight 11 UPDATES<\/li>\n
- Rocket Lab Electron Forum Section<\/li>\n
- L2 Master Section<\/li>\n
- Click here to Join L2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The countdown to liftoff will officially began at T-6 hours when the road leading to Launch Complex 1 was temporarily closed. This ensured the safety of both vehicles and residents located near to the launch site.<\/p>\n
At T-4 hours, Electron was lifted vertical and fueled up with RP-1 (a highly refined grade of kerosene). Liquid oxygen was loaded into both stages of the vehicle starting at T-2 hours before launch.<\/p>\n
The designated marine space safety zones \u2013 areas near Launch Complex 1 where boats and ships are prohibited from traveling \u2013 was activated at T-2 hours. These zones, along with the airspace safety zones that are activated at T-30 minutes to liftoff, prevent any traffic from passing close to the launch site and causing a possible delay or scrub.<\/p>\n
Space Shuttle<\/path>Space Shuttle models<\/path>Space Technology<\/path>\n (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n
At T-18 minutes, Rocket Lab\u2019s launch director polled the launch team and confirm that all of Electron\u2019s vital systems were ready for flight. The launch team remained in control of the countdown up until T-2 minutes when the rocket\u2019s onboard guidance computers took over and began the launch sequence.<\/p>\n
The nine Rutherford engines on the first stage ignited at T-2 seconds, with Electron lifting off at T-0 following a final status check by the onboard computers.<\/p>\n
These nine engines continued to burn up until the T+2 minute 37 second mark, at which point the engines shut down simultaneously in an event known as Main Engine Cutoff, or MECO. Stage separation occurred four seconds later, with the ignition of the vacuum-optimized Rutherford motor taking place at T+2 minutes and 44 seconds.<\/p>\n
Payload fairing separation occurred at 3 minutes and 16 seconds into the flight.<\/p>\n
Electron\u2019s second stage and the NROL-151 payload reached orbit at about T+9 minutes, with Curie kick stage separation occurring at the T+9 minute 5 second mark.<\/p>\n
A Curie engine burn occurred at about 50 minutes into the flight, in order to place the vehicle into the target orbit required for payload deployment. Confirmation of spacecraft separation then followed.<\/p>\n
Just like Electron Flight 10, Rocket Lab was conducting post-mission testing on the rocket\u2019s first stage, which features a number of performance improvements and additions as part of a \u201cblock upgrade\u201d.<\/p>\n
The countdown to liftoff will officially began at T-6 hours when the road leading to Launch Complex 1 was temporarily closed. This ensured the safety of both vehicles and residents located near to the launch site.<\/p>\n
At T-4 hours, Electron was lifted vertical and fueled up with RP-1 (a highly refined grade of kerosene). Liquid oxygen was loaded into both stages of the vehicle starting at T-2 hours before launch.<\/p>\n
The designated marine space safety zones \u2013 areas near Launch Complex 1 where boats and ships are prohibited from traveling \u2013 was activated at T-2 hours. These zones, along with the airspace safety zones that are activated at T-30 minutes to liftoff, prevent any traffic from passing close to the launch site and causing a possible delay or scrub.<\/p>\n
Space Shuttle (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n At T-18 minutes, Rocket Lab\u2019s launch director polled the launch team and confirm that all of Electron\u2019s vital systems were ready for flight. The launch team remained in control of the countdown up until T-2 minutes when the rocket\u2019s onboard guidance computers took over and began the launch sequence.<\/p>\n The nine Rutherford engines on the first stage ignited at T-2 seconds, with Electron lifting off at T-0 following a final status check by the onboard computers.<\/p>\n These nine engines continued to burn up until the T+2 minute 37 second mark, at which point the engines shut down simultaneously in an event known as Main Engine Cutoff, or MECO. Stage separation occurred four seconds later, with the ignition of the vacuum-optimized Rutherford motor taking place at T+2 minutes and 44 seconds.<\/p>\n Payload fairing separation occurred at 3 minutes and 16 seconds into the flight.<\/p>\n Electron\u2019s second stage and the NROL-151 payload reached orbit at about T+9 minutes, with Curie kick stage separation occurring at the T+9 minute 5 second mark.<\/p>\n A Curie engine burn occurred at about 50 minutes into the flight, in order to place the vehicle into the target orbit required for payload deployment. Confirmation of spacecraft separation then followed.<\/p>\n Just like Electron Flight 10, Rocket Lab was conducting post-mission testing on the rocket\u2019s first stage, which features a number of performance improvements and additions as part of a \u201cblock upgrade\u201d.<\/p>\n