Rocket Lab to launch rocket from New Zealand

Aerospace startup company Rocket Lab have delayed plans to launch its Electron rocket until Friday.

The four-hour launch window was originally supposed to open at 8:30 p.m. ET on Thursday -- Friday in New Zealand, where the rocket will launch from. The new window will open at 8:30 p.m. ET on Friday -- 1:30 in the afternoon on Saturday in New Zealand.

Officials said the launch was delayed because they needed more time.

The launch will be streamed live on Rocket Lab's website.

Rocket Lab is based in the United States but operates a New Zealand subsidiary. Its Launch Complex 1 is located on the MÄhia Peninsula.

If the launch and flight go as planned, the rocket will release a trio of satellites. Rocket Lab's first clients include the companies Planet and Spire.

The companies may have some waiting to do, however, as the Rocket Lab plans to proceed cautiously.

"We're expecting to scrub multiple times as we wait for perfect conditions and make sure everything on the vehicle is performing as it should," Peter Beck, founder and CEO of Rocket Lab, said in a statement.

Rocket Lab aims to provide launch services to smaller satellites, or what are often called CubeSats. The company believes its smaller rockets will offer the launch schedule flexibility that makers of the toaster-sized satellites want.

Electron's payload includes Planet's Earth-imaging Dove satellite and two Lemur-2 satellites made by Spire. The two Lemur-2 satellites can map weather and track ships.

Though the rocket will -- fingers crossed -- release commercial satellites, the company still considers the launch a test. In fact, they've dubbed the launch "Still Testing."

Electron is a tow-stage rocket. It's 55 feet tall and can manage payloads of up to 550 pounds.

During the inaugural test flight of Electron, the rocket made it to the edge of space but failed to enter orbit.

Russia to build launch pad for super heavy-lift carrier by 2028
Moscow (Sputnik) Nov 29, 2017
The development of the Vostochny Cosmodrome will reduce Russia's dependency on Kazakhstan's Baikonur spaceport, which it is leasing until 2050. Russia plans to build a launch pad for its "super heavy-lift rocket by 2028," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said at a government meeting. In August, Igor Komarov, the head of Roscosmos State Space Corporation, said that the lau ... read more

Related Links
Rocket Science News at Space-Travel.Com

Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal