Global InformationRocket Lab information
 | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
Traded as |
|
| Industry | Launch service provider |
| Founded | June 2006 in Auckland[1] |
| Founder | Peter Beck |
| Headquarters | Long Beach, California, U.S.[2] |
Key people | Peter Beck (CEO & CTO) |
| Products | Electron rocket Rutherford rocket engine Curie and HyperCurie rocket engine Photon satellite bus family Neutron rocket |
| Revenue |  US$245 million (2023) |
Operating income |  US$−135 million (2022) |
Net income | US$−183 million (2023) |
| Total assets | US$940 million (December 2023[3]) |
| Total equity | US$673 million (2022) |
Number of employees | c. 1,650[4] (January 2024) |
| Website | rocketlabusa |
| Footnotes / references [5][6] | |
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. is a publicly traded aerospace manufacturer and launch service provider[7] that operates and launches lightweight Electron orbital rockets[7] used to provide dedicated launch services for small satellites[8] as well as a suborbital variant of Electron called HASTE (Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron).[9] The company plans to build a larger Neutron rocket[10] as early as 2025.[11] Electron rockets have launched to orbit 46 times from either Rocket Lab's Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand[7] or at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Wallops Island, Virginia, United States.[12] Rocket Lab has launched one sub-orbital HASTE rocket to date from Wallops Island, Virginia.[13] In addition to the Electron, Neutron, and HASTE launch vehicles, Rocket Lab manufactures and operates spacecraft and is a supplier of satellite components including star trackers, reaction wheels, solar cells and arrays, satellite radios, separation systems, as well as flight and ground software.[14]
The company was founded in New Zealand in 2006.[15] By 2009,[16] the successful launch of Ātea-1[16] made the organization the first private company in the Southern Hemisphere to reach space.[15] The company established headquarters in California, US in 2013[17] and developed the expendable[18] Electron rocket.[19] The first launch of the rocket took place in May 2017.[20] In August 2021, the company became a public company, listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange through a SPAC merger.[21] In May 2022, after four years of development, the Electron booster attempted recovery by a helicopter.[22]In 2024, the company announced that a first stage booster that was recovered on an earlier launch will be reused on a future launch, marking the first time Electron would reuse the full first stage.[23]In August 2020 the company launched its first in-house designed and built satellite, Photon.[24]
The company also builds and operates satellites for the Space Development Agency,[25][26] a space-based missile defense program of the United States Space Force established by Michael D. Griffin (who later became a Rocket Lab board member) in his role as Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering during the Trump administration.[27][28] The company's participation drew controversy in New Zealand,[29] where members of parliament noted the company is contributing to the "weaponization of space" and could be in violation of New Zealand's nuclear-free zone laws.[30] The Union of Concerned Scientists warns SDA will escalate global tensions and called the project "fundamentally destabilizing".[31]
Rocket Lab has acquired four companies to expand its space systems offering including Sinclair Interplanetary in April 2020,[32] Advanced Solutions Inc. in December 2021,[33] SolAero Holdings Inc in January 2022,[34] and Planetary Systems Corporation in December 2021.[35] As of December 2023, the company had approximately 1,650 full time permanent employees globally.[36] Approximately 700 of these employees are based in New Zealand with the remainder in the United States.[37] The acquisition of SolAero added 425 staff members in the United States in January 2022.[38][39] Two attempts have been made to recover an Electron booster by helicopter.[22][40] In addition, six attempts have been made at soft water recovery.[41][42][43][44][45][46] As of 2022, the company is developing the bigger Neutron reusable unibody rocket;[11] multiple spacecraft buses,[47] and rocket engines: Rutherford,[48] Curie,[49] HyperCurie,[50] and Archimedes.[51]In mid 2024, the company entered the engine test phase in Neutron’s development process.[52]
- ^ "Rocket Lab Celebrates Rich Ten-Year History". Rocket Lab. 2016. Archived from the original on 21 April 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
- ^ Masunaga, Samantha (21 March 2017). "Rocket Lab moves headquarters from Los Angeles to Huntington Beach". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 29 March 2019. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
- ^ "Rocket Lab (RKLB) - Total assets".
- ^ "Rocket Lab USA Number of Employees 2021-2023 | RKLB".
- ^ "Rocket Lab USA Inc. 2022 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 7 March 2023. Archived from the original on 11 March 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ "Rocket Lab USA Inc (RKLB) Reports Year-Over-Year Revenue Growth and Margin Expansion". 27 February 2024.
- ^ a b c "New Zealand Launch Schedule [Including Past Launches] - RocketLaunch.Live". www.rocketlaunch.live. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "IAF : B4.5 Speed To Space: Dedicated Launch For Small Satellites on Electron". www.iafastro.org. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Introduces Suborbital Testbed Rocket, Selected for Hypersonic Test Flights". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Neutron". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ a b Roulette, Joey (30 September 2022). "Rocket Lab to fire up first tests of new engine next year - CEO". Reuters. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Mehta, Aaron (7 December 2022). "New Zealand's Rocket Lab prepares for first launch from US, as it eyes national security growth". Breaking Defense. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Foust, Jeff (18 June 2023). "Rocket Lab launches first suborbital version of Electron". SpaceNews. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Makes its Defense Prime Debut with $0.5 Billion Contract to Design and Build Satellite Constellation for Space Development Agency". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Rocket Lab USA Poised to Change the Space Industry". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ a b "Ä€tea-1". Gunter's Space Page. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Expands Footprint with New Long Beach Headquarters and Production Complex". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Wall, Mike (4 November 2022). "Rocket Lab launches Swedish satellite but fails to catch booster with helicopter". Space.com. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Electron". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Completed Missions". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Completes Merger with Vector Acquisition Corporation to Become Publicly Traded End-to-End Space Company". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ a b "Rocket Maker Fails in 1st Bid to Catch, Recover Booster With Helicopter | Aerospace Tech Review". www.aerospacetechreview.com. 3 May 2022. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Returns Previously Flown Electron to Production Line in Preparation for First Reflight". www.businesswire.com. 10 April 2024. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
- ^ Foust, Jeff (4 September 2020). "Rocket Lab launches first Photon satellite". SpaceNews. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Rocket Lab wins $515 million contract to build 18 satellites for U.S. government agency". 23 December 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Supports Significant Milestone for DARPA and Space Development Agency". 13 July 2022. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ Erwin, Sandra (21 April 2019). "Space Development Agency a huge win for Griffin in his war against the status quo". Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ Foust, Jeff (12 August 2018). "Mike Griffin joins board of Rocket Lab". Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab could be used to make war from space - Green Party". RNZ. 16 October 2022. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Corlett, Eva (17 October 2022). "New Zealand MP says Rocket Lab launches could betray country's anti-nuclear stance". TheGuardian.com. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ "Space-based Missile Defense". Union of Concerned Scientists. 30 August 2018. Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Closes Acquisition of Satellite Hardware Manufacturer Sinclair Interplanetary". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Acquires Space Software Company Advanced Solutions, Inc". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Closes Acquisition of Space Solar Power Products Company SolAero Holdings, Inc". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Closes Acquisition Of Space Hardware Company Planetary Systems Corporation". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "XBRL Viewer". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "The Post". www.thepost.co.nz. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ Bellan, Rebecca (18 January 2022). "Rocket Lab acquires SolAero Holdings for $80M to boost space solar cell production". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 11 March 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ Pullar-Strecker, Tom (14 December 2021). "Most Rocket Lab staff set to be based outside NZ by early next year". Stuff. Archived from the original on 26 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Helicopter Was Unable to Catch Booster Before it Fell Into The Pacific". Bloomberg.com. 4 November 2022. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Launch Schedule – Spaceflight Now". Archived from the original on 16 August 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
- ^ "Rocket Lab to Recover Electron Booster on Next Mission". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
- ^ "Rocket Lab to Recover Electron Rocket, Introduce Helicopter Operations During Next Launch". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
- ^ Foust, Jeff (24 March 2023). "Rocket Lab launches BlackSky satellites". SpaceNews. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
- ^ Foust, Jeff (13 July 2023). "Rocket Lab takes another step towards reusability on next Electron launch". SpaceNews. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ Jones, Caleb. "Electron | We Love the Nightlife (Capella Acadia 1)". Space Launch Now. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Unveils Spacecraft Bus Lineup". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ "Rutherford Engine Test Fire". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "The Kick Stage: Responsible Orbital Deployment". Rocket Lab. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Etherington, Darrell (13 May 2020). "Rocket Lab tests new hyperCurie engine that will power its deep space delivery vehicle". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 10 November 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Gebhardt, Chris (2 December 2021). "Neutron switches to methane/oxygen, 1 Meganewton Archimedes engine revealed". NASASpaceFlight.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Completes Archimedes Engine Build, Begins Engine Test Campaign". www.businesswire.com. 6 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.