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Rocket Lab Electron
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Rocket Lab Electron
Electron is a two-stage, partially reusable orbital launch vehicle developed by Rocket Lab, an American aerospace company with a wholly owned New Zealand subsidiary. Servicing the commercial small satellite launch market, it is the third most launched small-lift launch vehicle in history. Its Rutherford engines are the first electric-pump-fed engine to power an orbital-class rocket. Electron is often flown with a kickstage or Rocket Lab's Photon spacecraft. Although the rocket was designed to be expendable, Rocket Lab has recovered the first stage twice and is working towards the capability of reusing the booster. The Flight 26 (F26) booster has featured the first helicopter catch recovery attempt. Rocket Lab has, however, abandoned the idea of catching Electron.
In December 2016, Electron completed flight qualification. The first rocket was launched on 25 May 2017, reaching space but not achieving orbit due to a glitch in communication equipment on the ground. During its second flight on 21 January 2018, Electron reached orbit and deployed three CubeSats. The first commercial launch of Electron, and the third launch overall, occurred on 11 November 2018. Since then, Electron has launched successfully 69 times, with an additional 4 failures, for a grand total of 73 launches.
Electron uses two stages with the same diameter (1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)) filled with RP-1/LOX propellant. The main body of the rocket is constructed using a lightweight carbon composite material.
Both stages use the Rutherford rocket engine, the first electric-pump-fed engine to power an orbital rocket. The electric pumps are powered by lithium-polymer batteries. The second stage uses three batteries which are "hot swapped", two of the batteries are jettisoned once depleted to shed mass. There are nine Rutherford engines on the first stage and one vacuum-optimized version on the second stage. The first stage engines deliver 162 kN (36,000 lbf) of thrust and the second stage delivers 22 kN (4,900 lbf) of thrust. Almost all of the engines' parts are 3D printed to save time and money in the manufacturing process.
Rocket Lab has also developed an optional third stage, known as the "kick stage", designed to circularize the orbits of its satellite payloads. The Electron kick stage is equipped with a single Curie engine that is capable of performing multiple burns, uses an unspecified "green" bipropellant, and is 3D printed. It was first used during Electron's second flight. The kick stage can transport up to 150 kg (330 lb) of payload.
Rocket Lab has also developed a derivative spacecraft of the kick stage, Photon, which is intended for use on lunar and interplanetary missions. Photon will be capable of delivering small payloads of up to 30 kg (66 lb) into lunar orbit.
The Electron payload Fairing is 2.5 m (8 feet and 2.4 inches) in length with a 1.2 m (3 feet and 11.2 inches) diameter and a total mass of 44 kg (97 lbm).
Manufacturing the carbon composite components of the main flight structure has traditionally required 400 hours, with extensive hand labor in the process. In late 2019, Rocket Lab brought a new robotic manufacturing capability online to produce all composite parts for an Electron in just 12 hours. The robot was nicknamed "Rosie the Robot", after The Jetsons character. The process can make all the carbon fiber structures as well as handle cutting, drilling, and sanding such that the parts are ready for final assembly. The company objective as of November 2019 is to reduce the overall Electron manufacturing cycle to just seven days.
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Rocket Lab Electron AI simulator
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Rocket Lab Electron
Electron is a two-stage, partially reusable orbital launch vehicle developed by Rocket Lab, an American aerospace company with a wholly owned New Zealand subsidiary. Servicing the commercial small satellite launch market, it is the third most launched small-lift launch vehicle in history. Its Rutherford engines are the first electric-pump-fed engine to power an orbital-class rocket. Electron is often flown with a kickstage or Rocket Lab's Photon spacecraft. Although the rocket was designed to be expendable, Rocket Lab has recovered the first stage twice and is working towards the capability of reusing the booster. The Flight 26 (F26) booster has featured the first helicopter catch recovery attempt. Rocket Lab has, however, abandoned the idea of catching Electron.
In December 2016, Electron completed flight qualification. The first rocket was launched on 25 May 2017, reaching space but not achieving orbit due to a glitch in communication equipment on the ground. During its second flight on 21 January 2018, Electron reached orbit and deployed three CubeSats. The first commercial launch of Electron, and the third launch overall, occurred on 11 November 2018. Since then, Electron has launched successfully 69 times, with an additional 4 failures, for a grand total of 73 launches.
Electron uses two stages with the same diameter (1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)) filled with RP-1/LOX propellant. The main body of the rocket is constructed using a lightweight carbon composite material.
Both stages use the Rutherford rocket engine, the first electric-pump-fed engine to power an orbital rocket. The electric pumps are powered by lithium-polymer batteries. The second stage uses three batteries which are "hot swapped", two of the batteries are jettisoned once depleted to shed mass. There are nine Rutherford engines on the first stage and one vacuum-optimized version on the second stage. The first stage engines deliver 162 kN (36,000 lbf) of thrust and the second stage delivers 22 kN (4,900 lbf) of thrust. Almost all of the engines' parts are 3D printed to save time and money in the manufacturing process.
Rocket Lab has also developed an optional third stage, known as the "kick stage", designed to circularize the orbits of its satellite payloads. The Electron kick stage is equipped with a single Curie engine that is capable of performing multiple burns, uses an unspecified "green" bipropellant, and is 3D printed. It was first used during Electron's second flight. The kick stage can transport up to 150 kg (330 lb) of payload.
Rocket Lab has also developed a derivative spacecraft of the kick stage, Photon, which is intended for use on lunar and interplanetary missions. Photon will be capable of delivering small payloads of up to 30 kg (66 lb) into lunar orbit.
The Electron payload Fairing is 2.5 m (8 feet and 2.4 inches) in length with a 1.2 m (3 feet and 11.2 inches) diameter and a total mass of 44 kg (97 lbm).
Manufacturing the carbon composite components of the main flight structure has traditionally required 400 hours, with extensive hand labor in the process. In late 2019, Rocket Lab brought a new robotic manufacturing capability online to produce all composite parts for an Electron in just 12 hours. The robot was nicknamed "Rosie the Robot", after The Jetsons character. The process can make all the carbon fiber structures as well as handle cutting, drilling, and sanding such that the parts are ready for final assembly. The company objective as of November 2019 is to reduce the overall Electron manufacturing cycle to just seven days.
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