Rocket Lab launched a satellite for an undisclosed commercial customer on March 5, sending the payload into low Earth orbit aboard its Electron rocket from the company’s launch site in New Zealand.
The 18-meter-tall Electron rocket lifted off at 6:53 p.m. EST (2353 GMT), or 12:53 p.m. local time on March 6, beginning a mission the company named “Insight at Speed is a Friend Indeed.” Rocket Lab announced the launch only a few hours before liftoff and provided limited details about the payload.
The company said the mission carried a single satellite destined for an orbit approximately 470 kilometers above Earth. However, Rocket Lab ended its live webcast before the deployment phase at the request of the unnamed customer.
Observers have speculated that the payload could be linked to U.S.-based Earth observation company BlackSky, which operates a constellation of imaging satellites. Rocket Lab has previously conducted several launches for BlackSky and has recently supported the deployment of the company’s next-generation Gen-3 satellites in low Earth orbit.
The launch marked the 76th mission for Electron, Rocket Lab’s small satellite launch vehicle designed to provide dedicated access to orbit for small payloads. The company has also conducted seven launches of HASTE, a suborbital variant of Electron used for hypersonic technology testing, bringing Rocket Lab’s total launch count to 83.
