It's a Test

Launch Failure

Liftoff Time (GMT)

04:20:00

Thursday May 25, 2017

Watch Replay

Official Livestream

Mission Details

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Launch Notes

Maiden flight of the Electron rocket. The rocket performed nominally but was destroyed during second stage flight by the flight termination system after telemetry was lost. The blame was placed on a ground-based tracking station. First orbital flight attempt from New Zealand.

Humanity Star

Wiki

Humanity Star is a highly reflective polyhedron launched on the It's a Test and Still Testing maiden flights of the Electron rocket. It was designed and built by Rocket Lab specifically for this mission. It is a bright, blinking satellite orbiting Earth, visible to the naked eye in the night sky. The Humanity Star is designed to encourage everyone to look up and consider our place in the universe. Created by Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck, the Humanity Star is a geodesic sphere made from carbon fibre with 65 highly reflective panels. It spins rapidly, reflecting the sun’s rays back to Earth, creating a flashing light that can be seen against a backdrop of stars.

Low Earth Orbit

1 Payload

10 kilograms

Rocket

Active
Electron

Active Since 2017


Price

$7.50 million

Rocket

Height: 18m

Payload to Orbit

LEO: 320 kg

Liftoff Thrust

224 Kilonewtons

Fairing

Diameter: 1.2m

Height: 4.05m

Stages

2

Launch Site

Rocket Lab LC-1A

Māhia Peninsula, New Zealand

Fastest Turnaround

15 days 1 hour

Stats

Electron


1st

Mission

1st

Mission of 2017

Rocket Lab


1st

Mission

2nd

Mission of 2017

2017


28th

Orbital launch attempt