NASA Wallops Flight Facility Archives

Rocket Lab USA launches first US mission for NRO from Wallops

California-based Rocket Lab USA successfully launched a mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office on Thursday from Launch Complex 2 at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Accomack County, the aerospace company announced.

The Eastern Shore mission, dubbed “Live and Let Fly,” was Rocket Lab’s first launch from U.S. soil for the NRO, which builds, designs, launches and maintains reconnaissance satellites and provides satellite intelligence, imaging and other data for the Department of Defense and the intelligence community. Rocket Lab previously launched four successful missions for the agency from New Zealand’s Mahia Peninsula.

“We are proud to once again deliver mission success for the NRO on Electron,” Peter Beck, Rocket Lab’s founder and CEO, said in a statement. “The NRO have placed their trust in Rocket Lab since our first launch together in 2020, and it’s an honor to continue delivering dedicated access to orbit for national security missions, this time from the other side of the planet.”

NRO missions provide critical information to a half-million government users, including members of the intelligence community, domestic agencies, the military and lawmakers.

The NRO selected Rocket Lab for the mission through the agency’s Rapid Acquisition of a Small Rocket (RASR) contract. The contract process “enables the NRO to explore new opportunities for launching small satellites through a streamlined, commercial approach,” Rocket Lab said in the statement.

Beck added, “The RASR contract process is an innovative, forward-leaning approach from the NRO that has allowed the agency to capitalize on the speed and responsiveness of commercial launch services, and we’re thrilled to make it possible with Electron.”

Rocket Lab announced in February 2022 that it had selected Wallops Island as the location for its launch site and a new manufacturing and assembly complex for its new, reusable Neutron rocket.

Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron small orbital launch vehicle, the Photon satellite platform and is developing the Neutron. Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle is the second most-frequently launched U.S. rocket annually and has delivered more than 180 satellites to orbit for private and public sector organizations, according to the company.

Rocket Lab has two launch sites in New Zealand in addition to the one at Wallops. The mission was Rocket Lab’s 46th Electron launch overall.

Rocket Lab, Leidos sign contract for 4 rocket launches

California-based Rocket Lab USA has signed a contract with Reston-based Fortune 500 contractor Leidos to launch four Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron (HASTE) missions, the launch company announced Tuesday.

The suborbital testbed launch vehicle missions will lift off from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 2 at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, located at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Accomack County. They are scheduled during 2024 and 2025.

Leidos selected Rocket Lab for hypersonic test launches under the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed (MACH-TB) contract, which the Naval Surface Warfare Center awarded to a Leidos subsidiary in October 2022. Rocket Lab launched its first HASTE rocket, derived from its Electron rocket, on June 17 for Leidos.

“Our first HASTE mission … successfully demonstrated HASTE’s ability to accelerate the cadence of hypersonic flight testing for the nation,” Brian Rogers, Rocket Lab’s senior director of global launch services, said in a statement. “We’re proud to now follow it up with a series of four additional missions for Leidos to support hypersonic technology innovation and technology maturation.”

Rocket Lab National Security, the company’s wholly owned subsidiary focused on the defense and intelligence communities, operates the HASTE program.

Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron rocket and the Photon satellite platform and is developing the Neutron 13-ton payload class launch vehicle. Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, the company has delivered 171 satellites to orbit for private and public organizations. Rocket Lab has two launch pads in New Zealand in addition to its pad in Virginia.

Rocket Lab to launch new hypersonic rocket from Va.

California-based Rocket Lab USA Inc. will launch its new Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron (HASTE) rocket in Accomack County in the first half of 2023.

The company introduced the suborbital testbed launch vehicle, derived from its Electron rocket, on Monday. Rocket Lab is preparing the HASTE vehicle for launch for a confidential customer at its integration and control facility on Wallops Island, according to a news release. The rocket will launch from the company’s Launch Complex 2 within Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, where the aerospace company launched its 60-foot-tall Electron rocket in January, its first launch from U.S. soil.

“Hypersonic and suborbital test capabilities are key priorities for the nation, yet the [Department of Defense’s] ability to test these systems has been limited,” Brian Rogers, Rocket Lab’s senior director of global launch services, said in a statement. “With HASTE, we’ve taken a proven vehicle in Electron and tailored it specifically to deliver highly capable, frequent and cost-effective hypersonic and suborbital test opportunities from our existing launch site in Virginia.”

Rocket Lab announced in February 2022 that it had selected Wallops Island as the location for its launch site and a new manufacturing and assembly complex for its new, reusable Neutron rocket, a move that is expected to bring 250 jobs.

Rocket Lab National Security, a wholly owned subsidiary, will primarily operate HASTE. HASTE will have a payload capacity of up to 1,540 pounds and options to accommodate larger payloads.

Since 2018, the Electron vehicle has deployed satellites for NASA, the National Reconnaissance Office, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the U.S. Space Force.

Dynetics, an Alabama-based wholly owned subsidiary of Reston-based Leidos Holdings Inc., has selected Rocket Lab to provide hypersonic test launch capability under a Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane division contract announced in October 2022. The Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit has also selected Rocket Lab to prototype hypersonic launch capability on HASTE in its hypersonic and high-cadence testing capabilities (HyCAT) program. In addition, the company completed a study for the Missile Defense Agency’s Targets and Countermeasures Program to evaluate a variety of payloads on HASTE, which could set the stage for future test flights, the company said in a news release.

Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron rocket and the Photon satellite platform and is developing the Neutron 13-ton payload class launch vehicle. Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, the company has delivered 159 satellites to orbit for private and public organizations. Rocket Lab has two launch pads in New Zealand in addition to its pad in Virginia.

Rocket Lab announces December Va. launch window

Rocket Lab USA Inc. will launch the first U.S. mission for its Electron rocket from a launch pad on NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Accomack County during a 13-day window that opens Dec. 7.

The company announced the Wallops launch Thursday. The mission, called “Virginia is for Launch Lovers,” will deploy satellites for Herndon-based HawkEye 360 and will be Rocket Lab’s first liftoff from the company’s Launch Complex 2 at Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport within the NASA facility. The launch pad was built for the company’s Electron rocket and is the company’s first launch site in the United States.

California-based Rocket Lab announced in February that it selected Wallops Island as the location for its launch site and a new manufacturing and assembly complex for its new Neutron rocket. The Electron rocket launch from Virginia will supplement its Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand, from which 31 Electron missions have previously taken off. Combined, the two pads can support more than 130 launch opportunities every year, Rocket Lab said in a news release.

The Electron is a small, two-stage, partially recoverable orbital launch rocket that stands about 60 feet high and measures about four feet in diameter. Rocket Lab has flown 32 Electron missions, including three failed missions, since the first Electron flight in 2017.

The December launch window has been set following progress by NASA in certifying its Autonomous Flight Termination Unit software, which is required to enable Electron launches from Virginia.

“We are honored and excited to bring a new launch capability to Virginia’s Eastern Shore,” Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck said in a statement. “Electron is well established as the leader in small launch, reliably serving the responsive space needs of the commercial, civil, DoD (Department of Defense), and national security markets alike. With our inaugural mission from Launch Complex 2, we are immensely proud to expand on this strong launch heritage by enabling a new capability for the nation from Virginian soil. We look forward to making history this December with our dedicated mission partners HawkEye 360, NASA and Virginia Space.”

The Electron launch in December is the first of three it will undertake for HawkEye 360 in a contact to deliver 15 satellites to low Earth orbit between 2022 and 2024. Rocket Lab will also provide HawkEye 360 with separation systems produced by Planetary Systems Corporation, a Maryland-based space hardware company acquired by Rocket Lab in December 2021.

“We’re proud to be a Virginia-based company, with Virginia-developed technology, launching out of the Virginia spaceport,” HawkEye 360 CEO John Serafini said in a statement. “We selected Rocket Lab because of the flexibility it enables for us to place the satellites into an orbit tailored to benefit our customers. Deploying our satellites on Rocket Lab’s inaugural launch is a giant leap in Virginia’s flourishing space economy.”

HawkEye opened a new, 19,000-square-foot facility in Herndon in July to boost production of its satellites.

With the December launch of the satellites, its sixth cluster of three, HawkEye will have placed 15 next-generation satellites into orbit within two years. A seventh cluster is anticipated to launch in February, followed by clusters 8 and 9 mid-2023. Once its latest cluster is commissioned, HawkEye will be able to collect radio frequency data as frequently as every hour anywhere in the world, the company said in a news release.

NASA’s Wallops visitor center will be open for the launch. A live webcast will also be available at www.rocketlabusa.com/live-stream from around T-40 minutes.

Rocket Lab USA picks Va. for rocket launch site and manufacturing facility

Rocket Lab USA Inc. has selected Wallops Island as the location for its launch site and a new manufacturing and assembly complex for its new Neutron rocket, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Monday.

The move is expected to create as many as 250 jobs.

Rocket Lab will launch Neutron from a new launch pad owned by the Virginia Commercial Space Authority that will be located within the NASA Wallops Flight Facility and Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on the Eastern Shore. The 250,000-square-foot complex will be built on 28 acres next to the flight facility, which was purchased by the flight authority in 2021. It will be located near Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 2, the company’s first launch site in the United States, which was built for its Electron rocket.

“Virginia’s industrial and innovation ecosystem and skilled workforce make the commonwealth an optimal location for industry leaders like Rocket Lab,” Youngkin said in a news release announcing the selection. “This important project reinforces the Eastern Shore’s legacy as an aerospace hub that offers the infrastructure for manufacturing and developing new technologies, and we look forward to a long partnership with Rocket Lab.”

Rocket Lab revealed details about Neutron in December 2021. The reusable rocket is designed to lift 8-tons of payload and expected to provide launch capabilities for satellite mega-constellations, deep space missions and human spaceflight, according to the company’s website. Neutron is expected to be operational in late 2024.

“Neutron is a new generation of rocket that will advance the way space is accessed, and Virginia makes perfect sense as Neutron’s home base,” Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck said, adding that the state is one of four that have a Federal Aviation Administration spaceport license for missions to Earth orbit or on interplanetary trajectories.

Rocket Lab will begin construction promptly. The company recently landed a $24 million development contract from U.S. Space Force’s Systems Command in support of Neutron’s capability to aid national security and defense missions, according to the company.

“(Virginia’s) position on the Eastern Seaboard is the ideal location to support both Neutron’s frequent launch cadence and the rocket’s return-to-Earth capability of landing back at its launch site after lift-off,” he said.

Beck said the company will also be able to draw on the state’s experienced aerospace workforce, which is expected to grow 8.5% during the next decade, said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick.

Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Long Beach, California, Rocket Lab delivers launch services, spacecraft components, satellites, other spacecraft and management solutions to make space access faster, easier and cheaper. The company also designed and manufactures the Electron small orbital launch vehicle and the Photon satellite platform. Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, the Electron has delivered 109 satellites to orbit for private and public sector organizations for national security, scientific research, space debris mitigation, Earth observation, climate monitoring, and communications operations. It is the second-most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually since 2019, according to the release.

Its Photon platform has been selected to support NASA missions to the moon, Mars and the first private commercial mission to Venus, according to the company.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Accomack County, the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority (Virginia Space), and the General Assembly’s Major Employment and Investment (MEI) Project Approval Commission to close the deal. The state will support the project with $30 million appropriated to Virginia Space for infrastructure and operational systems, subject to legislative approval. The MEI commission also approved up to $15 million to support site improvements and construction of a building to be owned by Virginia Space and leased to Rocket Lab.

Rocket Lab’s job creation will be supported by Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, the Virginia Community College System and other higher education partners.

Calif. aerospace company proposes Accomack County facility

Accomack County is a finalist for a proposed Rocket Lab USA Inc. facility, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday.

If the county is selected, Long Beach, California-based aerospace company Rocket Lab would develop a facility to support part production, assembly, integration and test operations to support the launch of its Neutron launch vehicle from the NASA Wallops Flight Facility. Rocket Lab would expand to two launch pads on Wallops Island — one to support the company’s Electron launch vehicle and one to support the Neutron.

Rocket Lab announced the Neutron rocket in March 2021 and expects it to be operational in late 2024. The rocket is designed to deliver an 8-ton payload to low Earth orbit and might ultimately support human spaceflight.

“Wallops Island is one of just four major launch sites in the United States — and the only one located in the country’s best state for business. I’m so proud of the work our Virginia team has done to get to this final step. I challenge everyone on the commonwealth’s team, and everyone at Rocket Lab, to get this project over the finish line — and propel Rocket Lab and Virginia’s Eastern Shore to new heights,” Northam said in a statement.

Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company that delivers launch services, spacecraft components, satellites and other spacecraft and on-orbit management. Rocket Lab manufactures the Electron small orbital launch vehicle, which has delivered 109 satellites to orbit since January 2018, and the Photon satellite platform, which NASA has selected to support missions to the moon and to Mars, and which will support the first private commercial mission to Venus.

Rocket Lab is currently working with NASA to secure the necessary agreements and certifications for launches from Wallops Island.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Accomack County, the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority and the General Assembly’s Major Employment and Investment Project Approval Commission to secure funding for the proposed project. The new facility would be constructed on a 28-acre site near the Wallops Island Flight Facility purchased by Virginia Space in 2021.

The Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, a workforce initiative created by the VEDP and Virginia Community College System, would provide customizable recruitment and training services at no cost to the company.

Northrop Grumman will make two missions to International Space Station in 2023

NASA awarded two missions to Falls Church-based Fortune 100 defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. for 2023 launches that will deliver a combined total of approximately 16,500 pounds of cargo to the International Space Station.

“As a trusted and reliable partner to NASA, Northrop Grumman has played a critical role in keeping the International Space Station operational since 2014,” Frank DeMauro, Northrop Grumman vice president and general manager of tactical space systems, said in a statement. “With these additional flights to the orbiting laboratory, we will provide services to both NASA and our commercial partners and continue to use Cygnus not as just a cargo delivery and disposal vehicle, but as a platform for science and technology research and development opportunities.”

Under the Commercial Resupply Services contract-2 (CRS-2), Northrop Grumman has been providing resupply services to the station since 2016. For the missions announced Wednesday, Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft will be carried into orbit by the company’s Antares launch vehicle from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia.

Northrop Grumman employs more than 90,000 people and reported $33.8 billion in 2019 revenue.

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Virginia Space launches rocket for first U.S. Space Force mission

Minotaur IV. Photo courtesy NASA. Photo by NASA/Chris Perry

The Minotaur IV rocket, carrying a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), launched its first U.S. Space Force (USSF) mission from the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority’s (Virginia Space) Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Eastern Virginia, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Wednesday.

“The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport continues to serve the aerospace industry as a competitive, state-of-the-art facility,” Northam said in a statement. “Today’s successful launch is a reflection of the commonwealth’s ongoing commitment to ensuring Virginia remains a premier leader in space exploration, research, and commerce.”

The 78-foot tall rocket was built and operated by Falls Church-based Fortune 100 federal contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. The launch marks the seventh mission for Minotaur IV in 10 years, with the most recent launches in September 2013 for NASA and November 2013 for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). The Wednesday launch was the first from the upgraded launch pad.

The Wednesday launch was also the first time that Virginia Space’s new Payload Processing Facility (PPF) was used for space vehicle processing and payload integration. The PPF opened in July 2019 and can be used for national security and classified missions, and includes cargo bays allowing government and commercial businesses to process multiple payloads in one facility.

“With its ability to attract diverse customers and support many types of missions, Virginia Space is well-positioned to play an important part in boosting our economic recovery and sustaining future growth,” Northam said in a statement.

The USSF Missile Systems Center’s Launch Enterprise Program provided services for Wednesday’s launch. This was also NRO’s first launch from Wallops Island. The NRO is a defense agency responsible for developing, acquiring, launching and operating intelligence satellites for national security needs.

“We consider it an honor to support this vital national security mission with our unparalleled facilities and elite workforce,” Virginia Space CEO and Executive Director Dale Nash said in a statement. “Virginia Space is also proud to be delivering tangible results on the significant investment that the commonwealth has made in the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport.”