Rocket Lab
Rocket Lab postpones launch because of coronavirus pandemic
Rocket Lab announced March 24 that it was delaying the next launch of its Electron rocket from New Zealand as the government there institutes a near-total lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Rocket Lab launch preparations continue despite coronavirus travel restrictions
Rocket Lab is continuing with preparations for a launch later this month despite the coronavirus pandemic, although another small launch company’s plans for a launch this month remain unclear.
Students integrate cubesat before coronavirus shuts school
Boston University students and professors spent a decade developing what they affectionately call the Toaster. It’s a six-unit cubesat to detect changes in Earth’s magnetic field caused by space weather.
Rocket Lab to acquire smallsat component manufacturer
Rocket Lab announced March 16 that it is acquiring a Canadian smallsat component company as it seeks to build up its satellite division.
Small launch companies don’t foresee price war
Small launch vehicle developers say they don’t see a “race to the bottom” for launch prices despite the large number of companies developing vehicles and the emergence of new rideshare options.
Rocket Lab to send Capella radar satellite to mid-inclination orbit
Capella Space announced a contract March 5 to send a Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite into a mid-inclination orbit later this year on a Rocket Lab Electron launch vehicle.
Kleos Space borrows $3.7 million while awaiting first launch
Radio-frequency-mapping startup Kleos Space on Feb. 18 said it received a $3.4 million loan from Dubai-based Winance to keep the company “well funded” while it awaits the launch of its first satellites.
Rocket Lab wins contract to launch NASA lunar cubesat mission
NASA awarded a contract to Rocket Lab Feb. 14 for the launch of a cubesat mission that will serve as a precursor for the agency’s planned lunar Gateway.
Rocket Lab turns attention to satellite efforts
Small launch vehicle developer Rocket Lab plans to focus on its satellite program in 2020, offering a high-performance spacecraft bus that complements its existing rocket.
Rocket Lab kicks off busy year with NRO launch
Rocket Lab successfully launched a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office Jan. 30 in the first of up to a dozen launches planned by the company this year.
Rocket Lab to launch small satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office
Named “Birds of a Feather,” the mission is scheduled to lift off Jan. 31 from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand.
Rocket Lab to build second launch pad in New Zealand
Just days after marking the completion of a new launch site in Virginia, Rocket Lab announced Dec. 18 that it has started work on a second pad at its original launch site in New Zealand.
Rocket Lab inaugurates U.S. launch site
The U.S. Air Force will be the first customer for a Rocket Lab Electron launching in 2020 from a new launch site in Virginia, the company announced Dec. 12.
NASA Earth Science leaders anticipate low-cost launch options
NASA Earth Science leaders are enthusiastic about the potential for principal investigators to take advantage of new low-cost launch options.
Electron launches smallsats in test of rocket reusability
Rocket Lab successfully launched several smallsats Dec. 6 on an Electron mission also designed to test technologies to make the rocket’s first stage reusable.
Rocket Lab introduces robotic manufacturing system to increase Electron production
In its ongoing quest to increase launch vehicle production, Rocket Lab has unveiled a new industrial robotic system designed to speed up manufacturing of its Electron rocket.
