Launching from Pad A at Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand’s Mahia Peninsula, the “There And Back Again” mission will be Rocket Lab’s 26th Electron launch.
The launch window will open on April 19, but Rocket Lab is working for a launch that will not happen earlier than April 27 UTC / April 28 CEST, 2022.
The “There And Back Again” mission will see Electron deploy 34 satellites to a sun-synchronous orbit for a variety of customers including Alba Orbital, Astrix Astronautics, Aurora Propulsion Technologies, E-Space, and Unseenlabs, and bring the total number of satellites launched by Electron to 146.
“There And Back Again” is also a recovery mission where, for the first time, Rocket Lab will attempt a mid-air capture of Electron’s first stage as it returns from space using parachutes and a helicopter.
Like previous recovery missions, Electron’s first stage will undertake a series of complex maneuvers designed to enable it to survive the extreme heat and forces of atmospheric re-entry.
Electron will be equipped with a heat shield to help protect the stage’s nine Rutherford engines and a parachute to slow Electron down in order for Rocket Lab’s customized Sikorsky S-92 helicopter to catch the stage as it returns. Unlike previous recovery missions, “There And Back Again” is attempting to avoid an ocean splashdown as the helicopter will return to the stage back to land after the catch. Upon the success of this recovery, Electron will be one step closer to being the first reusable orbital smallsat launcher.
Countdown time will be added as soon as it is known.
THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 2022 AT 1:15 AM UTC+03
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