Update: March 17 at 9:27 a.m. ET: Electron took flight at 6:38 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 16 and successfully delivered two Capella Space satellites to low Earth orbit.
Humans have been launching rockets to space for nearly 80 years, yet it feels as though we’ve only hit the tip of the iceberg in terms of what’s possible. These upcoming rockets provide a promising glimpse of what we can expect during the next era of spaceflight.
In a disappointing turn of events, Rocket Lab is reconsidering its daredevil method of trying to catch and recover its Electron boosters mid-air using a helicopter.
Rocket Lab is riding the wave from last year’s success, gearing up for rapid back-to-back launches from sites in New Zealand and the United States. One of the planned launches will initiate a new partnership with U.S. space tech company Capella Space.