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Jeff Foust

3–4 minutes

An Electron lifts off Aug. 20 carrying an iQPS satellite. Credit: Rocket Lab

WASHINGTON — Rocket Lab launched another satellite for Japanese radar-imaging company iQPS on Aug. 20.

An Electron rocket lifted off from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 9:04 a.m. Eastern on a mission called “The Lightning God Defends” by Rocket Lab. The launch targeted an orbit at an altitude of 575 kilometers and an inclination of 42 degrees.

The vehicle’s payload, the QPS-SAR-18 satellite built by the Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space, or iQPS, separated from the rocket’s kick stage about 50 minutes later. iQPS said it established contact with the satellite 40 minutes after deployment and confirmed it was operating properly.

This was the ninth Electron launch for iQPS overall and the second consecutive mission for the company. Another Electron launched an iQPS satellite Aug. 6.

iQPS is deploying a constellation of synthetic aperture radar, or SAR, satellites, with a goal of having 24 satellites in orbit by May 2028 and 26 satellites by 2030. It has primarily used Electron to launch those satellites, with nine additional Electron launches under contract.

This was the 14th launch of Electron so far this year, including three launches of the HASTE suborbital version. Rocket Lab says it expects to beat last year’s company record of 21 Electron and HASTE missions.

“Electron and HASTE continue to lead the industry in small launch,” Peter Beck, chief executive of Rocket Lab, said during an Aug. 10 earnings call, “and on track to beat last year’s launch tally, too.”

Demand for Electron remains high, the company said. While the company has not disclosed specific pricing for the vehicle, Adam Spice, Rocket Lab’s chief financial officer, said average selling prices for the vehicle “have gone up pretty significantly over the years.”

Beck argued that experience with Electron, which has now launched 93 times, is helping the company secure business for its larger Neutron rocket, which has yet to make its first flight. “We have a proven track record with Electron and HASTE, and customers know we develop and scale reliable launch vehicles, which is why they’re coming to us now and locking in Neutron slots early.”

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