Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab is a US aerospace corporation with a New Zealand subsidiary.^[2] Rocket Lab's mission is to develop lightweight, cost-effective commercial rocket launch services. The Electron Program was founded on the premise that small payloads such as CubeSats require dedicated small launch vehicles and flexibility not currently offered by traditional rocket systems. Electron, Rocket Lab's lightweight launch vehicle, is designed to service the small satellite market with dedicated, high-frequency launch opportunities. Electron is capable of delivering payloads of 150 kg to a 500 km Sun-synchronous orbit.

The Electron test program is scheduled to run over the second half of 2016, with commercial flights commencing in 2017 at a starting price of US$4.9 million.^[3]

History

Rocket Lab was founded in 2006 by CEO and CTO Peter Beck. Internet entrepreneur Mark Rocket was the seed investor and co-Director from 2007 to 2011.^[4] In 2009 Rocket Lab claimed it had became the first private company in the Southern Hemisphere to reach space with the Ātea-1 sounding rocket, a claim which was not supported with flight data as the rocket had no telemetry downlink and was not recovered.^[5]

In December 2010 Rocket Lab was awarded a US contract from the Operationally Responsive Space Office (ORS) to study a low cost space launcher to place nanosatellites into orbit.^[6][7][8][9]

Funding has been obtained from Bessemer Venture Partners, Callaghan Innovation, in 2014, and from Khosla Ventures in 2013.^[10][11]

Ātea-1

The first launch of the Ātea-1 (Māori for 'space') suborbital sounding rocket occurred in late 2009.^[12] The 6-metre (20 ft) long rocket weighing 60 kg is designed to carry a 2 kg payload to an altitude of 120 km.^[13] It was intended to carry scientific payloads or possibly personal items.^[14][15]

Ātea-1 was successfully launched from Great Mercury Island near Coromandel on 30 November 2009 at 2:30 pm after fueling problems delayed the scheduled 7:10 am liftoff.^[16] The rocket was not tracked, had no telemetry downlink and was not recovered. Thus, no flight data exists and the actual apogee altitude could not be verified.

A second launch of Ātea-1 was never attempted.

Electron

Electron is a two-stage launch vehicle which uses Rocket Lab's Rutherford liquid engines on both stages. The vehicle is capable of delivering payloads of 150 kg to a 500 km sun-synchronous orbit,^[17] the target range for the growing small satellite market. The projected cost is less than US$5 million per launch.^[18]

The Rutherford engine uses pumps that are uniquely powered by battery-powered electric motors rather than a gas generator, expander, or preburner.^[19] The engine is also fabricated largely by 3D printing, via electron beam melting,^[20] whereby layers of metal powder are melted in a high vacuum by an electron beam rather than a laser.

As of April 2016, the 22 kN (5,000 lbf) Rutherford engine for the second stage passed its firing tests; the first three test-flights are planned for late-2016 from Mahia Peninsula on New Zealand's North Island.^[21]

Launch Complex 1

After encountering difficulty in obtaining resource consent for the Kaitorete Spit launch site,^[22] Rocket Lab announced in November 2015 that its primary launch site would be on the Mahia Peninsula, east of Wairoa on the North Island, New Zealand.^[23] The site is licensed to launch rockets every 72 hours for 30 years.^[24] The Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 was officially opened on 26 September 2016 (UTC; 27 September NZDT).^[25]

References