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Rocket Lab, an aerospace startup, had hoped that it would launch its first rocket in America last year. However, the Dec 18 event was cancelled due to bad weather. The second attempt by the company, which was launched late on January 24, went without a hitch. Three satellites were delivered to orbit by the Electron rocket that launched from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, Herndon, Virginia.
Rocket Lab was established in New Zealand in 2006. It moved to Long Beach in California in 2013 and most of its operations are now in the USA. The company continued to launch its rockets out of New Zealand. Rocket Lab's 33rd launch, nicknamed "Virginia for Launch Lovers", was this latest mission. Only three of the missions were unsuccessful.
Electron, a 59-foot-long two-stage rocket engine designed for light duty, is powered by nine Rutherford rocket engines that run on liquid oxygen and RP-1 (refined kerosene). These engines are semi-famous for being 3D printed. SpaceX also uses 3D printing to make parts of its SuperDraco engines. Although Electron is not a reusable rocket, Rocket Lab is exploring the possibility of using a parachute or a helicopter to capture the first stage. Although it had some success in the early 2022, it has not made another attempt since then as it works to move launch operations to the USA.
While a rocket like the SpaceX Falcon 9 is capable of lifting thousands of pounds into high orbit, Electron can only lift 500 pounds (225 kg) to low-Earth orbit. Rocket Lab's first US-based launch this week was able to deploy just a few small satellites. Three Earth-observation satellites were carried by the rocket for HawkEye 360. HawkEye 360 uses radio-frequency analysis (RFA) to locate RF sources on earth's surface.
Rocket Lab is not as large as SpaceX. SpaceX has a number of government contracts to support ongoing Falcon 9 launches as well as the Starship rocket. Rocket Lab plans to develop more powerful launch platforms. Rocket Lab announced its Neutron rocket for 2021, which has a capacity that is about three times as large as a Falcon 9. It has recently begun assembling Neutron rockets close to the Wallops Island launch site. Neutron is intended to be reusable and aims to deploy constellations of satellites. This may not please the astronomical world.
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By: Ryan Whitwam
Title: Rocket Lab Launches First Electron Rocket From US Soil
Sourced From: www.extremetech.com/extreme/342604-rocket-lab-launches-first-electron-rocket-from-us-soil
Published Date: Thu, 26 Jan 2023 14:04:35 +0000
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