On November 17 at 01:40 UTC, a Rocket Lab Electron launched the “Love At First Insight” mission from Launch Complex-1 at Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand. Onboard the bright red striped three-stage rocket were two satellites for the BlackSky Global commercial imaging constellation.

Rocket Lab advanced its efforts toward recoverable first-stage engines with this mission. After the depleted first stage separated from the second stage, which continued into orbit,  the first stage headed back down into the atmosphere through “The Wall”, which Rocket Lab calls reentry without an engine burn to slow down. The booster was recovered from the water by a boat after a parachute-assisted splashdown. A helicopter was in the splashdown area to observe the booster coming down but did not attempt to catch it. The next Electron mission will be the first to attempt a catch mid-air for recovery and reuse. Rocket Lab has already begun to reuse some components from recovered stages but has yet to reuse complete stages.

Rocket Lab also introduced two new upgrades to the vehicle on this flight. They mentioned on air and on social media that the fairing was lengthened by 60 centimeters and had special modifications to the tip to accommodate the two satellites and their adapter. Keen-eyed viewers noticed that the second stage of the vehicle was also lengthened. This lets the first stage drop away at a lower velocity and have a gentler reentry, making it easier to refurbish and reuse. Falcon 9 makes the same compromise.

An hour after launch, the Electron kickstage released the satellites into their target orbit and then conducted one final burn to send it back into the atmosphere sooner rather than later. A proper deorbit would have sent it back into the atmosphere immediately; this burn just lowered the periapsis of the orbit closer to earth.

These satellites replace the two lost in the May 2021 Electron failure. Rocket Lab will launch four more satellites for BlackSky in two further launches. These satellites, Generation 2 of this particular design, weigh 56 kilograms, or two-thirds the mass of a kangaroo. The satellites contain a powerful Earth-facing telescope capable of resolving one-meter objects on the ground in four different spectral bands and a combined panchromatic mode.

More Information

Mission Overview (Rocket Lab via Archive Today)

Launch video