Rocket Lab at Māhia back in action after first launch in three months

Rocket Lab successfully launched a rocket into orbit from Mahia on Friday, for the first time in three months.

After an afternoon launch, the mission deployed a synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) satellite that will collect high-resolution images of Earth

Named after the Japanese God of the Moon, the iQPS-SAR-5 satellite TSUKUYOMI-I, the satellite joins another iQPS satellite already in orbit and forms part of what will eventually be a 36-satellite constellation capable of monitoring Earth at specific fixed points every 10 minutes.

The mission went from contract signing to successful launch in just eight months, once again demonstrating Rocket Lab’s ability to provide tailored, dedicated launches on rapid timelines.

“Congratulations to our team for hitting a new annual launch record of 10 missions, further cementing Electron’s position as the leading small launch vehicle globally. Once again, for the fifth year running, Electron is the second most frequently launched US rocket annually and we look forward to building on that record with an even busier year of launches in 2024,” Rocket Lab founder and chief executive Peter Beck said.

“It has been a privilege to provide the team at iQPS with a dedicated ride to orbit on an accelerated timeline and we’re honoured to play a key role in building out their SAR constellation with Electron.”

The launch was the first from Mahia after a failed mission in September.