Rocket Lab Corp., which launches rockets with diverse payloads, has been selected by the European Space Agency to launch the first two spacecraft for a future satellite-based navigation system for the continent.
The choice of the Electron rocket as the launch vehicle is the latest milestone for the Long Beach-based company, whose share price has
grown more than five-fold in less than a year.
Rocket Lab (Nasdaq: RKLB) will launch a pair of “Pathfinder A” satellites for the Paris-based agency. The satellites will be provided by European satellite prime contractors Thales Alenia Space and GMV.
The Electron rocket carrying the two satellites is scheduled to lift off from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand in December or later, with the timing often weather dependent.
The spacecraft will be deployed to a 510-kilometer (317-mile) low Earth orbit as part of a mission to test a new approach of providing location, direction, and timing services from satellites in low orbit.
‘Honor’ to Launch for ESA
The mission will assess how a low Earth orbit fleet of satellites can work in combination with Europe’s Galileo and EGNOS satellite constellations in higher orbits that already provide Europe’s own global navigation system.
“Launching a European mission on Electron that is integral to the future of Europe’s satellite navigation system is both an honor and a testament to our industry-leading launch service,” said Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck. Financial details were not released.
Terran Orbital, AstroForge
Since its founding in 2006, Rocket Lab has launched 67 Electron rockets. It is one of several Southern California companies making their mark in outer space.
Terran Orbital, a part of Lockheed Martin, makes small satellites at its facilities in Irvine. AstroForge in Huntington Beach is gearing up to mine asteroids for precious metals, while Irvine-based Turion Space’s goals include cleaning up space junk that poses a threat other spacecraft.
Virgin Galactic, founded by British mega-entrepreneur Richard Branson, will be resuming its space tourist flights next year from its Tustin headquarters. Even Palmer Luckey’s Anduril Industries in Costa Mesa is reportedly angling for a space in President Donald Trump’s wished-for Golden Dome missile defense system.
Rocket Lab has been gaining major traction over the last few months.
Shares in Rocket Lab have risen from $6.32 apiece in September to $36.08 apiece as of June 30, with a current market cap heading toward $17 billion.
Rocket Lab, a launch services and spacecraft company, was based in Huntington Beach before relocating to Long Beach in 2020.
Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle has become the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually.
Rocket Lab has deployed more than 200 payloads from its launch sites in the United States and New Zealand for private and public sector organizations.
Separately, a Rocket Lab Electron rocket on June 27 launched a quartet of satellites for Virginia-based geospatial analytics company Hawkeye 360. The mission was dubbed “Get The Hawk Outta Here.”