Private spaceflight firm Rocket Lab succeeded with the maiden voyage of its new launch vehicle.
At 4.20am UST on 25 May 2017, a teeny-tiny rocket lifted off from the Mahia Peninsula on the North Island of New Zealand.
As it accelerated skyward, it ticked off a series of firsts: the first launch from New Zealand, the first launch of US firm Rocket Lab’s Mini Launcher, and the first step in a journey to make it substantially easier for small companies to put satellites into space.
This isn’t competition for SpaceX. The rocket, named ‘It’s a Test’, was just 17 metres tall – substantially shorter than SpaceX’s 70-metre Falcon 9, or Nasa’s 110-metre Saturn V that took men to the Moon. The design is made entirely of carbon composite, comes with a partially 3D-printed engine, and is not reusable.
It carried no cargo, but has now proved that it’s capable of hefting about 150 kg into orbit. That’s not a lot – a high-end Earth observation or telecoms satellite weighs tons. But Rocket Lab’s Electron launcher is perfect for companies that only need something simple in orbit.
That means it can be cheaper. A Nasa launch can easily cost more than $100 million, whereas a lift into orbit from Rocket Lab costs just $5 million. If you don’t mind sharing space with other satellites, a small cubesat that can perform basic experiments or take pictures of the Earth can be put into space for just $77,000.
As well as big news for Rocket Lab, it’s also big news for New Zealand. The country wants to become a low-cost space hub, and is well-positioned to put satellites into polar orbits. Rocket Lab’s launch suffered from bad weather conditions, but proved that the country’s infrastructure can handle commercial rocket launches.
« This is the beginning of the flight test program, ” Rocket Lab founder and New Zealander Peter Beck told Wired.
“It’s the end of four years of R&D and testing on the ground. From a more personal level, it’s a really significant milestone to actually get a vehicle on the pad. Not many people make it there.”
Here’s the rocket in action:
#ItsaTest pic.twitter.com/KRo1iBB1wK May 25,2017
