Rocket Lab USA has successfully completed its 52nd Electron rocket launch, deploying a satellite for Capella Space into low Earth orbit.
The mission, titled “A Sky Full of SARs” in reference to the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) capabilities of Capella’s spacecraft, launched at New Zealand Standard Time on 12 August from Rocket Lab’s private orbital launch site, Launch Complex 1, located on New Zealand’s Mahia Peninsula. The mission successfully delivered Capella’s latest third-generation SAR Acadia satellite into a mid-inclination 615km low Earth orbit. Alongside the launch, Rocket Lab provided a bespoke extended fairing on the Electron rocket to accommodate the payload, and the satellite was deployed using a Rocket Lab-produced separation system.
This marks the fifth launch that Rocket Lab has conducted for Capella, following their first collaboration in August 2020 on the mission named “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Optical,” which deployed the inaugural satellite of Capella’s SAR constellation. Subsequent successful missions included the “Stronger Together” launch from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 2 on Wallops Island, Virginia, in March 2023, and the “We Love The Nightlife” mission from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand in August 2023.
“Electron is a reliable constellation builder, providing precise and dedicated deployment to unique orbits that allows satellite operators like Capella to iteratively build out their constellation when and where they need to,” commented Peter Beck, Founder and CEO of Rocket Lab. “I’m proud of the team for delivering this latest successful mission for Capella and for successfully delivering nine missions so far this year as Electron’s launch cadence continues to ramp up. With many more missions scheduled in the coming weeks and months, we look forward to delivering our busiest launch year yet in 2024.”
The launch window for Rocket Lab’s next Electron mission will be announced shortly. Rocket Lab recently secured a record ten-launch contract with Japanese Earth observation company Synspective, with two additional launches also scheduled for this year. Other satellite operators expected to launch with Rocket Lab in 2024 include space-based intelligence company BlackSky and French IoT company Kinéis.
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