For the first time a 3D printed Rutherford
engine previously launched to space will be flown again on an
Electron mission
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) (“Rocket Lab” or “the
Company”), a leading launch and space systems company, today
announced it is taking the next major step in evolving the Electron
launch vehicle into a reusable rocket by launching a pre-flown
Rutherford engine.
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A Rocket Lab Electron launch vehicle
lifts off from Launch Complex 1 before the first stage comes back
to Earth for an ocean landing and recovery as part of Rocket Lab's
reusability program. (Photo: Business Wire)
The 3D printed engine, previously flown on the ‘There and Back
Again’ mission launched in May 2022, has undergone extensive
qualification and acceptance testing to certify it for re-flight,
including multiple full mission duration hot fires where the
pre-flown engine performed flawlessly and on par with a new
Rutherford engine. With Rocket Lab’s propulsion team now giving the
engine the green light for re-flight, it will be launched on an
upcoming commercial mission scheduled for lift-off in the third
quarter of this year. While the engine is ready for re-flight now,
the Electron rockets scheduled for launch in the second quarter are
already built with complete Rutherford powerpack assemblies so this
pre-flown engine will join the production line to be integrated
with an in-progress rocket. The engine is one of several recovered
Rutherford engines that collectively have now been through many
successful full duration hot fires to support testing and R&D
efforts for recovery. The engine joins multiple systems that have
been re-flown on Electron including helium press systems.
Re-flying this engine is the latest milestone in an iterative
and methodical reusability program that has seen Rocket Lab recover
hardware and first stages from six Electron missions to date, with
the latest stage recovered on 24 March 2023 following ‘The Beat
Goes On’ mission launched from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New
Zealand. Rocket Lab has been iteratively developing and testing two
recovery methods in parallel; marine recovery where Electron’s
first stage returns to Earth under a parachute for a soft ocean
splashdown and recovery by boat, and mid-air recovery where
Electron’s first stage is caught in the air by a specialized
helicopter as the stage descends back to Earth under parachute.
Extensive analysis of returned stages shows that Electron
withstands an ocean splashdown and engineers expect future complete
stages to pass qualification and acceptance testing for re-flight
with minimal refurbishment. As a result, Rocket Lab is moving
forward with marine operations as the primary method of recovering
Electron for re-flight. This is expected to take the number of
Electron missions suitable for recovery from around 50% to between
60-70% of missions due to fewer weather constraints faced by marine
recovery vs mid-air capture, while also reducing costs associated
with helicopter operations. Rocket Lab will assess the
opportunities for flying a complete pre-flown first stage booster
following the launch of the pre-flown Rutherford engine in the
third quarter this year.
“Electron is already an established workhorse rocket that has
been delivering frequent and reliable access to orbit for more than
five years. By evolving it into a reusable launch vehicle we plan
to further increase our already steadily rising launch cadence,
offering more launch availability to our customers at a time when
space access is severely constrained globally,” said Rocket Lab
founder and CEO Peter Beck. “Reusability for small rockets is
immensely challenging as they simply don’t have the fuel margins
that larger rockets have to enable propulsive landing. Despite this
significant technical hurdle, our team has poured relentless
innovation into our reusability program and proven it’s possible to
bring home small rockets and run the engines as good as new. This
is a major technical achievement and sets a new standard for small
launch vehicles globally. We’re in this position thanks to our
diligent engineers designing robust components and over-qualifying
them from the outset of the Electron program to ensure reliability,
setting them up well for reuse. We look forward to continuing to
rewrite the rules of small launch through reusability, while using
the extensive data and experience we’re gathering along the way to
inform the development of our Neutron rocket which will be an even
greater step forward with a fully reusable first stage, interstage
and fairing.”
About the Rutherford Engine:
Designed and built by Rocket Lab, the Rutherford engine is the
world’s first 3D printed and electric pump-fed orbital rocket
engine. A total of 350 Rutherford engines have been launched to
space since Rocket Lab’s first Electron launch in 2017, making it
one of the most reliable and frequently flown U.S. orbital rocket
engines.
The Rutherford engine’s production scalability is facilitated by
additively manufactured, or 3D printed, primary components. With a
3D printed combustion chamber, injectors, pumps, and main
propellant valves, Rutherford has the most 3D printed components of
any rocket engine in the world. These primary components can be
printed in 24 hours, drastically reducing production timelines
compared with traditional production methods.
Rutherford engines are used as both first stage and second stage
engines on the Electron launch vehicle, with nine engines on the
first stage and a single vacuum optimized engine on the second
stage. The sea level versions on Electron’s first stage produce 24
kN (5,500 lbf) of thrust each and with a specific impulse of 311
seconds, while the vacuum optimized version on Electron’s second
stage produces a max thrust of 24 kN (5,500 lbf) of thrust and a
specific impulse of 343 seconds.
Instead of being powered by traditional gas turbine pumps,
Rutherford uses a cycle of brushless DC electric motors and
high-performance lithium polymer batteries to drive its propellant
pumps. This cuts down on much of the complex turbomachinery
typically required for gas generator cycle engines, meaning that
the Rutherford is simpler to build than a traditional engine but
still can achieve 90% efficiency.
Rutherford engines are manufactured at Rocket Lab’s headquarters
in Long Beach, California.
Forward Looking Statements.
This press release may contain certain “forward-looking
statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended. All statements, other than statements of historical facts,
contained in this release, including statements regarding our
expectations of financial results for first quarter 2023, strategy,
future operations, future financial position, projected costs,
prospects, plans and objectives of management, are forward-looking
statements. Words such as, but not limited to, “anticipate,” “aim,”
“believe,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “could,” “design,”
“estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,”
“potential,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “suggest,”
“strategy,” “target,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions or
phrases, or the negative of those expressions or phrases, are
intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all
forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These
forward-looking statements are based on Rocket Lab’s current
expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their
potential effects. These forward-looking statements involve a
number of risks, uncertainties (many of which are beyond Rocket
Lab’s control), or other assumptions that may cause actual results
or performance to be materially different from those expressed or
implied by these forward-looking statements. Many factors could
cause actual future events to differ materially from the
forward-looking statements in this release, including risks related
to the global COVID-19 pandemic; risks related to government
restrictions and lock-downs in New Zealand and other countries in
which we operate that could delay or suspend our operations; delays
and disruptions in expansion efforts; our dependence on a limited
number of customers; the harsh and unpredictable environment of
space in which our products operate which could adversely affect
our launch vehicle and spacecraft; increased congestion from the
proliferation of low Earth orbit constellations which could
materially increase the risk of potential collision with space
debris or another spacecraft and limit or impair our launch
flexibility and/or access to our own orbital slots; increased
competition in our industry due in part to rapid technological
development and decreasing costs; technological change in our
industry which we may not be able to keep up with or which may
render our services uncompetitive; average selling price trends;
failure of our launch vehicles, spacecraft and components to
operate as intended either due to our error in design in production
or through no fault of our own; launch schedule disruptions; supply
chain disruptions, product delays or failures; design and
engineering flaws; launch failures; natural disasters and epidemics
or pandemics; changes in governmental regulations including with
respect to trade and export restrictions, or in the status of our
regulatory approvals or applications; or other events that force us
to cancel or reschedule launches, including customer contractual
rescheduling and termination rights; risks that acquisitions may
not be completed on the anticipated time frame or at all or do not
achieve the anticipated benefits and results; and the other risks
detailed from time to time in Rocket Lab’s filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including under the
heading “Risk Factors” in Rocket Lab’s Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, which was filed with
the SEC on March 7, 2023, and elsewhere (including that the impact
of the COVID-19 pandemic may also exacerbate the risks discussed
therein). There can be no assurance that the future developments
affecting Rocket Lab will be those that we have anticipated. Except
as required by law, Rocket Lab is not undertaking any obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise.
+ ABOUT Rocket Lab
Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company with
an established track record of mission success. We deliver reliable
launch services, satellite manufacture, spacecraft components, and
on-orbit management solutions that make it faster, easier and more
affordable to access space. Headquartered in Long Beach,
California, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron small
orbital launch vehicle, the Photon satellite platform and the
Company is developing the large Neutron launch vehicle for
constellation deployment. Since its first orbital launch in January
2018, Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle has become the second
most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually and has delivered 159
satellites to orbit for private and public sector organizations,
enabling operations in national security, scientific research,
space debris mitigation, Earth observation, climate monitoring, and
communications. Rocket Lab’s Photon spacecraft platform has been
selected to support NASA missions to the Moon and Mars, as well as
the first private commercial mission to Venus. Rocket Lab has three
launch pads at two launch sites, including two launch pads at a
private orbital launch site located in New Zealand and a third pad
in Virginia at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport within the NASA
Wallops Flight Facility. To learn more, visit
www.rocketlabusa.com.
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+ Rocket Lab Media Contact Morgan Bailey
media@rocketlabusa.com
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