Rocket Lab launches and recovers reused engine

Rocket Lab’s 40th launch lifts off from Mahia yesterday. Picture supplied

In a surprise move Rocket Lab yesterday launched its first reused rocket engine and then recovered it.

Rocket Lab’s 40th Electron launch deployed a spacecraft for American space tech company Capella, a leading provider of commercial Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery.

The We Love The Night life mission lifted off yesterday at 11.45am from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 at Māhia, deploying Capella’s next-generation Acadia satellite for its synthetic aperture radar (SAR) constellation to a 640km circular low Earth orbit.

As a recovery mission, Electron rocket’s first stage returned to Earth under a parachute after launch and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean several hundred kilometres down range from Launch Complex 1.

Rocket Lab’s marine recovery vessel will soon extract the stage from the ocean and transport it back to Rocket Lab’s production complex for analysis and testing to inform future recovery efforts.

In addition to recovering the booster, Rocket Lab launched a pre-flown 3D-printed Rutherford engine for the first time. The engine previously flew on the first stage of the ‘There and Back Again’ mission, launched in May 2022. The engine performed on par with new Rutherford engines, completing a successful first stage burn.

“Congratulations to our team on delivering 40 Electron launches, completing another booster recovery, and proving Rutherford engines can be flown multiple times,” company founder and chief executive Peter Beck said.

“One mission is an enormous achievement in this industry, but 40 is a rare achievement and testament to the relentless drive, innovation and dedication of the Rocket Lab team.”

Capella’s existing satellite constellation delivers the highest quality and resolution SAR imagery commercially available, with the ability to penetrate all weather conditions and capture clear imagery 24-7, day and night, delivered through a fully automated ordering and delivery platform.