Combined Company Output Placed at 130+ Launches Per Year After Inaugural Mission

Rocket Lab's 33rd Electron rocket launch was successful, starting off operations from its Virginia base on the right foot.

The mission, “Virginia is for Launch Lovers”, lifted off at 18:00 eastern on January 24th from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 (LC-2) at Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (part of NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility). The mission deployed a trio of satellites for radio frequency geospatial analytics provider HawkEye 360 for use as relays and and analysis platforms at 550 kilometers above the earth. The successful mission means that Rocket Lab has now deployed a total of 155 satellites into orbit, taking off from one of the company's 3 launch pads across the U.S. and New Zealand.

The LC-2 launch, according to Rocket Lab personnel, "marks the beginning of a new era of responsive launch capability for small satellites from US soil," thanks to its convenient Virginia locale. Domestic, assured launch capacity is increasingly becoming the name of the game around the globe, with many competing companies finding no shortage of support from stakeholders at home. The closely intertwined relationship between NASA and Rocket Lab is no exception, with LC-2 slated to support up to a dozen missions per year. The Virginia site is still a bit more rate-limited than the firm's New Zealand location, however, which can provide more than 120 launches a year, making for 130+ slots with both places combined.

“Electron is already the leading small orbital rocket globally, and today’s perfect mission from a new pad is testament to our team’s unrelenting commitment to mission success,” said Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck. “After our busiest launch year yet in 2022 with nine successful missions, what better way to kick off the new year than by launching Virginia-built spacecraft from a Virginia launch site, enabled by our rapidly growing Virginia-based team. This mission has been a real team effort. Thanks to the consistent support of NASA, Virginia Space, the FAA, the Commonwealth and our mission partner HawkEye 360, Rocket Lab is proud to bring a reliable and responsive new launch capability to Virginia’s Eastern Shore.”

“We are grateful to share in the success of today’s launch. Our sixth trio of satellites and our first mid-latitude satellite cluster will broaden the scope of our geospatial insights for our partners around the world,” said HawkEye 360 CEO, John Serafini. “This also marks our first launch in our home state of Virginia, making today’s success even more meaningful. We look forward to a fruitful partnership with Rocket Lab and Virginia Space in the months and years ahead.”

FMI: www.rocketlabusa.com