Rocket Lab to attempt the first recovery of the electronic stage

Paris, November 6, 2020. – Rocket Lab will, for the first time, attempt to bring the first stage of an Electron launch vehicle back to Earth after launch, the company said.

Rocket Lab will attempt to recover the first phase during the launch of the “Return to Sender”, scheduled for take-off in mid-November. He intends to use a parachute system for a controlled water landing and therefore wants to pick up the first stage with a salvage ship.

The mission will mark “a milestone in Rocket Lab’s quest to make Electron a reusable rocket to support higher launch rates for small satellite missions,” the company said.

“The first phase recovery of a small launch vehicle is uncharted territory,” said Peter Beck, founder and CEO of Rocket Lab. “What we are trying to achieve with Electron is an incredibly difficult and complex challenge, but we are willing to pursue to further increase the launch cadence and offer even more frequent launch opportunities to small satellite operators “.

“Bringing an entire first stage back intact is the ultimate goal, but the success of this mission is really getting more data,” Beck said. “Regardless of the conditions in which the phase returns, we will learn a lot from this test and use it to iterate forward for the next attempt.”