Electron | The Moon God Awakens (QPS-SAR-5)
Launch Successful
L - -- : -- : -- : --
Launch Window
Dec. 15, 2023, 4 a.m. - Dec. 15, 2023, 6 a.m.
Dec. 15, 2023, 4 a.m. - Dec. 15, 2023, 6 a.m.
QPS-SAR-5 is a synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) satellite that will join a constellation after QPS-SAR-6 already in orbit. iQPS’s satellites are small, high-performance SAR satellites that use a lightweight, large, stowable antenna to collect high resolution images of Earth, even through clouds and adverse weather conditions.
Launch success w/ main payload in contact.
Liftoff.
Count resumed.
Holding at T-12 minutes.
Delayed to December 15 due to launch site winds.
Electron is a two-stage orbital expendable launch vehicle (with an optional third stage) developed by the American aerospace company Rocket Lab. Electron is a small-lift launch vehicle designed to launch small satellites and cubesats to sun-synchronous orbit and low earth orbit. The Electron is the first orbital class rocket to use electric-pump-fed engines, powered by the 9 Rutherford engines on the first stage. It is also used as a suborbital testbed (called HASTE) for hypersonics research.
See DetailsBooster was expended on its first flight.
Core will be expended.Rocket Lab is an American aerospace manufacturer with a wholly owned New Zealand subsidiary. The company develops lightweight, cost-effective commercial rocket launch services. The Electron Program was founded on the premise that small payloads such as CubeSats require dedicated small launch vehicles and flexibility not currently offered by traditional rocket systems. Its rocket, the Electron, is a light-weight rocket and is now operating commercially. The company is also producing a variety of spacecrafts and spacecrafts components.
INFO WIKI
Rocket Lab successfully launched a Japanese radar imaging satellite on the first flight of its Electron rocket since a failure nearly three months ago.
SpaceX has yet another busy week of launches this week, with Rocket Lab, Russia, and China also launching rockets. SpaceX is attempting to launch Falcon 9’s from both the Cape and Vanderberg with Starlink missions.
Rocket Lab is pushing to get its launch business back on track by the end of the year, reporting on Wednesday third-quarter results that saw continued strength in its space systems division.
Rocket Lab expects to resume Electron launches in late November after concluding a “largely improbable” combination of events caused the vehicle’s previous launch to fail.
A Japanese firm developing a constellation of SAR satellites is the latest to turn to Rocket Lab after the bankruptcy of rival launch company Virgin Orbit.
Amazon Leo, formerly known as Project Kuiper, is a mega constellation of satellites in Low Earth Orbit that will offer broadband internet access, thi…
AST SpaceMobile’s Block 2 BlueBird satellites are designed to deliver up to 10 times the bandwidth capacity of the BlueBird Block 1 satellites, requi…
Note: Unofficial reports indicate there may be 1 or more additional satellites that failed to separate from the upper stage, however this is not offi…
A batch of 9 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites for the Chinese state owned SatNet constellation operated by the China Satellite Network Group.…
Classified experimental Chinese satellite of unknown purposes (officially described for "spatial environment detection" purposes).
A batch of 24 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.
8 Earth observation satellites for the Jilin-1 commercial Earth observation satellites constellation: * High Resolution-04D 01-02 * High Resoluti…
A batch of 29 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.
Test flight of the H3-30 variant of the H3 launch vehicle with 3 LE-9 engines in the first stage and no SRBs. The flight will carry a dummy main payl…
A batch of 24 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.