Four of a Kind mission to kick off Rocket Lab’s year

Rocket Lab engineers are pictured completing assembly of an Electron Rocket. Picture from X

Rocket Lab’s Māhia spaceport swings into action today with the first of about 20 launches planned for this year.

The Four of a Kind mission will deploy four space situational awareness (SSA) satellites for Spire Global’s customer NorthStar Earth & Space.

As a secondary mission, Rocket Lab will be attempting to splash down and retrieve Electron’s first stage as part of the company’s plan to evolve Electron into a reusable rocket.

The launch window for the mission opens at 7.15pm.

The company has 22 missions locked in for 2024, the majority of which will be Electron launches expected to launch from its Māhia spaceport.

Of those missions, nine have been labelled recovery missions.