Rocket Lab完成第100次Electron发射:11月14日将YAMATSUMI-II卫星送入575公里轨道

美国加利福尼亚州 Long Beach,Rocket Lab 11月14日宣布,其 Electron 火箭完成第 100 次发射,创下商业研制火箭最快达到 100 次发射的纪录。这次任务名为 The Mountain God Rises,当天新西兰时间下午 6 时 30 分自新西兰 Launch Complex 1 发射场升空。
任务把日本 Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space(iQPS)的 YAMATSUMI-II 合成孔径雷达地球成像卫星送入 575 公里近地轨道。Rocket Lab 称任务取得成功。
这是 Electron 火箭第 11 次为 iQPS 发射,自 2023 年以来该系列任务成功率保持 100%。iQPS 已另订 7 次 Electron 专属发射,安排至 2030 年,以完成其卫星星座。
Rocket Lab 创始人兼首席执行官 Peter Beck 在发布材料中表示,很少有火箭能在整个服役期达到 100 次发射。公司称,Electron 是其首款采用 3D 打印发动机与碳复合材料箭体的轨道火箭。
Rocket Lab 表示,Electron 的运营经验为其下一代中型运载火箭 Neutron 奠定基础。公司未在此次发布中给出 Neutron 的首飞日期。
图中是Rocket Lab的Electron火箭点火升空
Rocket Lab Completes 100th Electron Launch, Deploying YAMATSUMI-II Satellite to 575 km Orbit on November 14
In Long Beach, California, Rocket Lab announced on November 14 that its Electron rocket had completed its 100th launch, setting a record for reaching 100 launches faster than any other commercially developed rocket. The mission, named The Mountain God Rises, lifted off from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 6:30 p.m. local time on November 14.
The mission deployed the YAMATSUMI-II synthetic aperture radar Earth-imaging satellite to a 575 km low Earth orbit for the Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space, Inc. (iQPS) of Japan. Rocket Lab said the mission was a success.
It was the 11th Electron launch for iQPS, with a 100 percent mission success record for that series since 2023. iQPS has booked seven more dedicated Electron launches through 2030 to complete its satellite constellation.
Rocket Lab founder and CEO Sir Peter Beck said in the announcement that few rockets reach 100 launches in their total operational lifetime. The company noted that Electron pioneered 3D-printed rocket engines and was the world first carbon-composite orbital rocket.
Rocket Lab said Electron operations lay the foundation for its next medium-lift rocket, Neutron. The announcement gave no first-flight date for Neutron.
来源:Rocket Lab
发布:GSM·美国(发布链接)
图片来源:图:Rocket Lab 的 Electron 火箭点火升空。来源:NASA Kennedy Space Center / Rocket Lab,公共领域,维基共享资源。 / Photo: A Rocket Lab Electron rocket lifts off. Credit: NASA Kennedy Space Center / Rocket Lab, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
GSM Global · 本篇英文版 English edition of this story

