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The Rocket Lab company sent 30 communications satellites (and a gnome from the creator of Dota 2) into space this Thursday and was able to retrieve the rocket for future reuse thanks to a series of parachutes.
The electron, the company’s rocket, is used to launch small probes into low Earth orbit. In its previous 15 launches, a new system has been used for each of them, but the company now intends to try and save most of the rocket for later missions.
The planned plan is that, at a certain altitude, the Electron will deploy a collapsible parachute and a main parachute to slow its fall. As the rocket slowly descends to Earth, Rocket Lab sends a helicopter to keep itself on the parachute line, effectively trapping the vehicle from the air and preventing the hardware from hitting the ocean.
During this sixteenth launch, Rocket Lab practiced these steps, including the deployment of the parachute, after launching the Electron from the company’s main facility in New Zealand. However, the company skipped the last stage of ripping the electron out of the air, and the rocket eventually landed in the Pacific Ocean.
Rocket Lab plans to take the Electron rocket out of the water and take the hardware to a factory for detailed examination.
The successful landing of the Electron’s first stage has brought California-based Rocket Lab closer to reusing rocket boosters, which the company says will enable missions to be launched at a faster cadence and potentially reduce costs.
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Marry is a fitness freak in every way and takes care of her health and others. He is probably the best person we have at Daily Research News for coverage of articles from the health sector. If she is not at work, she can be seen drinking a cup of coffee.
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