Faraday 1 – Spaceflight Now

Rocket Lab identifies faulty electrical connector as cause of launch failure

July 31, 2020 Stephen Clark

A detached electrical connector on the second stage of Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket caused a failure on a July 4 mission that destroyed seven small commercial satellites, but the company said Friday it is on track to resume launching before the end of August.

Rocket Lab satellite launch fails before reaching orbit

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

A failure during the second stage burn of a Rocket Lab Electron rocket caused seven small commercial satellites to crash back to Earth Saturday following liftoff from New Zealand.

Live coverage: Rocket Lab confirms launch failure after liftoff with seven satellites

July 4, 2020 Stephen Clark

Seven small satellites from Canon Electronics, Planet and In-Space Missions launched from New Zealand on Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket Saturday at 5:19:36 p.m. EDT (2119:36 GMT), but the payloads and launch vehicle were lost after a problem during the second stage burn.

Rocket Lab plans next launch Saturday, closes in on first mission from Virginia

July 3, 2020 Stephen Clark

Rocket Lab is readying for a launch from its New Zealand spaceport Saturday (U.S. time) with seven commercial satellites from Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom, while teams at Wallops Island, Virginia, move closer to Rocket Lab’s first launch there as soon as August.