Category: Rocket Lab
Watch Rocket Lab’s 12th launch ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ take off tonight
Rocket Lab’s delayed 12th launch is scheduled to take place tonight late night Pacific time, mid-afternoon on the 11th at the company’s New Zealand launch facility. The Electron rocket will be taking payloads to orbit from NASA, the National Reconnaissance Office and the University of New South Wales. “Don’t Stop…
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Virgin Orbit sets first orbital launch for May 24
Virgin Orbit has been preparing for this moment for years, but it’s now officially ready to launch its small satellite delivery vehicle to orbit for the first time. This key demonstration mission, taking off from Mojave Air and Space Port in California, will replicate the actual operational launch experience that…
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RocketLab tests new hyperCurie engine that will power its deep space delivery vehicle
Rocket Lab is already in the testing phase for a new engine it’s building to propel its forthcoming Photon Lunar spacecraft, according to CEO and founder Peter Beck . Beck shared an image of the engine, called hyperCurie, undergoing tests conducted by the company’s propellant team. HyperCurie, as its name…
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Rocket Lab inks deal to carry Japanese startup Synspective’s first satellite into orbit
The well-funded Japanese space startup Synspective has tapped launch provider Rocket Lab to take its first Earth observation satellite to orbit. Launch is planned for late 2020, and the company’s StriX–α craft will be the sole payload. Synspective was founded in 2018 and by mid-2019 had raised about $100 million,…
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Rocket Lab proves it can recover a rocket in mid-air
Last year, Rocket Lab announced that it would attempt to reuse the first stage of its Electron rocket. The company’s goal is to catch the stage as it falls back towards the ocean by plucking it out of mid-air with a helicopter. While that’s ambitious… Source
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Rocket Lab catches an Electron stage in mid-air, demonstrating a key part of its rocket recovery plan
[embedded content] Rocket Lab is in the process of developing a way to recover the rockets it launches, despite their originally being designed as fully expendable launch vehicles. The company had a surprise announcement on Wednesday: It has already managed to successfully catch an Electron in mid-air, during a test…
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