Rocket Lab Electron

Electron
Electron launching TROPICS in 2023
FunctionSmall-lift launch vehicle
ManufacturerRocket Lab
Country of originNew Zealand[1]
United States[2][3][4]
Project costUS$100 million[5]
Cost per launchAbout US$7.5 million[6][7]
Size
Height18 m (59 ft)[8]
Diameter1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)[8]
Mass12.5 t (28,000 lb)[9]
Stages2–3[8][10]
Capacity
Payload to LEO
Mass
  • Original: 225 kg (496 lb)[11]
  • Updated: 320 kg (710 lb)[11]
Payload to SSO
Mass
  • Original: 150 kg (330 lb)[11]
  • Updated: 200 kg (440 lb)[11]
Associated rockets
Comparable
Launch history
StatusActive
Launch sites
Total launches54[a]
Success(es)50[a]
Failure(s)4
First flight25 May 2017
Last flight5 November 2024
First stage
Height12.1 m (40 ft)
Diameter1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)[8]
Powered by9 × Rutherford[8]
Maximum thrustSL: 224.3 kN (50,400 lbf)[8]
vac: 234 kN (53,000 lbf)
Specific impulse311 s (3.05 km/s)[8]
PropellantRP-1/LOX[8]
Second stage
Height2.4 m (7 ft 10 in)
Diameter1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)[8]
Powered by1 × Rutherford[8]
Maximum thrust25.8 kN (5,800 lbf)[8]
Specific impulse343 s (3.36 km/s)[8]
PropellantRP-1/LOX[8]
Kick stage (optional) – Photon
Powered by1 × Curie[10]
Maximum thrust0.12 kN (27 lbf)[10]
PropellantViscous liquid monopropellant (AP, Al, Polydimethylsiloxane)[citation needed]
Kick stage (optional) – Photon (modified)
Powered by1 × HyperCurie[12]
Maximum thrust0.4 kN (90 lbf)[13]
Specific impulse310 s (3.0 km/s)[13]
Propellantunspecified hypergolic bi-propellant
[edit on Wikidata]

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.[14][15] Electron services the commercial small satellite launch market.[16] 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.[17] 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.[18] The Flight 26 (F26) booster has featured the first helicopter catch recovery attempt. Rocket Lab has, however, abandoned the idea of catching Electron.

In December 2016, Electron completed flight qualification. The first rocket was launched on 25 May 2017,[19] reaching space but not achieving orbit due to a glitch in communication equipment on the ground.[20][21] During its second flight on 21 January 2018, Electron reached orbit and deployed three CubeSats.[22] The first commercial launch of Electron, and the third launch overall, occurred on 11 November 2018.[23] Since then, Electron has launched successfully 46 times, with an additional 4 failures, for a grand total of 50 launches.

  1. ^ "Rocket Lab Celebrates Rich Ten-Year History". Rocket Lab USA. 30 June 2016.
  2. ^ Berger, Eric (17 October 2018). "Rocket Lab Gets Second Launch Site Gears Up for Rapid Flight Cadence". Ars Technica. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  3. ^ Botsford End, Rae (2 May 2015). "Rocket Lab: the Electron, the Rutherford, and why Peter Beck started it in the first place". Spaceflight Insider. Archived from the original on 10 May 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  4. ^ "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.
  5. ^ 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!
  6. ^ Vance, Ashlee (3 February 2020). "A Small Rocket Maker is Running a Different Kind of Space Race". Bloomberg. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  7. ^ 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.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Electron". Rocket Lab USA. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference spacelaunchreport-electron was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ 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.
  11. ^ a b c d "Rocket Lab Increases Electron Payload Capacity, Enabling Interplanetary Missions and Reusability". Rocket Lab USA. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  12. ^ Etherington, Darrell (13 May 2020). "Rocket Lab tests new hyperCurie engine that will power its deep space delivery vehicle". TechCrunch. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  13. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference pm-stage3-lunar was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ "Rocket Lab Celebrates Rich Ten-Year History". Rocket Lab USA. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  15. ^ "View All Details". app.companiesoffice.govt.nz. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference rocketlabs-electron201607 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Grush, Loren (14 April 2015). "A 3D-Printed, Battery-Powered Rocket Engine". Popular Science. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  18. ^ "Rocket Lab makes its first booster recovery after successful launch". TechCrunch. 20 November 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference bbc20170525 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference Flight1result was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ "Rocket Lab Completes Post-Flight Analysis for Electron 'Its a Test'". Rocket Lab. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  22. ^ Ryan, Holly (21 January 2018). "Blast off! Rocket Lab successfully reaches orbit". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  23. ^ Rocket Lab USA (10 November 2018), It's Business Time Launch – 11/11/2018, retrieved 11 November 2018


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