Global InformationRocket Lab Electron information
 | |
 Electron launching TROPICS in 2023 | |
| Function | partially Reusable orbital launcher |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Rocket Lab |
| Country of origin | New Zealand[1] United States[2][3][4] |
| Project cost | US$100 million[5] |
| Cost per launch | About US$7.5 million[6][7] |
| Size | |
| Height | 18 m (59 ft)[8] |
| Diameter | 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)[8] |
| Mass | 12.5 t (28,000 lb)[9] |
| Stages | 2–3[8][10] |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to LEO | |
| Mass |
|
| Payload to SSO | |
| Mass |
|
| Associated rockets | |
| Comparable | Shavit, Kaituozhe-1, Unha, Prime, Miura 5,SSLV |
| Launch history | |
| Status | Active |
| Launch sites |
|
| Total launches | 46 |
| Success(es) | 42 |
| Failure(s) | 4 |
| First flight | May 25, 2017 |
| Last flight | 23 April 2024 (Active) |
| First stage | |
| Height | 12.1 m (40 ft) |
| Diameter | 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)[8] |
| Powered by | 9 × Rutherford[8] |
| Maximum thrust | Sea level: 224.3 kN (50,400 lbf)[8] Vacuum: 234 kN (53,000 lbf) |
| Specific impulse | 311 s (3.05 km/s)[8] |
| Propellant | RP-1/LOX[8] |
| Second stage | |
| Height | 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in) |
| Diameter | 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)[8] |
| Powered by | 1 × Rutherford[8] |
| Maximum thrust | Vacuum: 25.8 kN (5,800 lbf)[8] |
| Specific impulse | 343 s (3.36 km/s)[8] |
| Propellant | RP-1/LOX[8] |
| Kick stage (optional) – Photon | |
| Powered by | 1 × Curie[10] |
| Maximum thrust | Vacuum: 0.12 kN (27 lbf)[10] |
| Propellant | Viscous liquid monopropellant (AP, Al, Polydimethylsiloxane)[citation needed] |
| Kick stage (optional) – Photon (modified) | |
| Powered by | 1 × HyperCurie[13] |
| Maximum thrust | Vacuum: 0.4 kN (90 lbf)[14] |
| Specific impulse | 310 s (3.0 km/s)[14] |
| Propellant | unspecified hypergolic bi-propellant |
Electron is a two-stage, partially reusable orbital launch vehicle developed by Rocket Lab, an American aerospace company with a wholly owned New Zealand subsidiary.[15][16] Electron was developed to service the commercial small satellite launch market.[17] As of May 2024, it’s the third most launched small-lift launch vehicle in history. Its Rutherford engines are the first electric-pump-fed engine to power an orbital-class rocket.[18] Electron is often flown with a kickstage or Rocket Lab's Photon spacecraft. Although the rocket was designed to be expendable, Rocket Lab has recovered the first stage twice and is working towards the capability of reusing the booster.[19] The Flight 26 (F26) booster has featured the first helicopter catch recovery attempt.
In December 2016, Electron completed flight qualification. The first rocket was launched on 25 May 2017 in a flight called "It's a Test",[20] reaching space but not achieving orbit due to a glitch in communication equipment on the ground.[21][22] During its second flight on 21 January 2018, Electron reached orbit and deployed three CubeSats, in a mission called "Still Testing".[23] The first commercial launch of Electron, and the third launch overall, occurred on 11 November 2018, in a mission called "It's Business Time".[24] Since then, Electron has launched successfully 42 times, with an additional 4 failures, for a grand total of 46 launches.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Celebrates Rich Ten-Year History". Rocket Lab USA. 30 June 2016.
- ^ Berger, Eric (17 October 2018). "Rocket Lab Gets Second Launch Site Gears Up for Rapid Flight Cadence". Ars Technica. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- ^ Botsford End, Rae (2 May 2015). "Rocket Lab: the Electron, the Rutherford, and why Peter Beck started it in the first place". Spaceflight Insider. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
- ^ "Rocket Lab Electron 'It's a Test' flight successfully makes it to space". Rocket Lab USA. 25 May 2017. Archived from the original on 12 December 2017.
- ^ Beck, Peter. "Yea, It took us $100m to get to orbit and I believe that was too much!". twitter.com. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
Yea, It took us $100 million to get to orbit and I believe that was too much!
- ^ Vance, Ashlee (3 February 2020). "A Small Rocket Maker is Running a Different Kind of Space Race". Bloomberg. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
- ^ Davenport, Christian (2 October 2020). "Virginia has a rocket launch site, and it's about to grow with the most successful startup since SpaceX". The Washington Post. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Electron". Rocket Lab USA. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
spacelaunchreport-electronwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c Bennett, Jay (23 January 2018). "Rocket Lab Reveals Secret Engine and "Kick Stage" for the Electron Rocket". Popular Mechanics. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Rocket Lab Increases Electron Payload Capacity, Enabling Interplanetary Missions and Reusability". Rocket Lab USA. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- ^ Clark, Stephen (16 July 2018). "Scotland site selected as launch base for Lockheed Martin, Orbex". Spaceflight Now.
- ^ Etherington, Darrell (13 May 2020). "Rocket Lab tests new hyperCurie engine that will power its deep space delivery vehicle". TechCrunch. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
pm-stage3-lunarwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Rocket Lab Celebrates Rich Ten-Year History". Rocket Lab USA. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "View All Details". app.companiesoffice.govt.nz. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
rocketlabs-electron201607was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Grush, Loren (14 April 2015). "A 3D-Printed, Battery-Powered Rocket Engine". Popular Science. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ "Rocket Lab makes its first booster recovery after successful launch". TechCrunch. 20 November 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
bbc20170525was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Flight1resultwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Rocket Lab Completes Post-Flight Analysis for Electron 'Its a Test'". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
- ^ Ryan, Holly (21 January 2018). "Blast off! Rocket Lab successfully reaches orbit". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ Rocket Lab USA (10 November 2018), It's Business Time Launch – 11/11/2018, retrieved 11 November 2018