Aerospace Startup Rocket Lab Adding Satellite Manufacturing To Services

Rocket Lab, a huge new startup in the NewSpace category, has added satellite manufacturing to its list of services it provides customers.

The company has already demonstrated its launch capabilities and has begun sending various payloads into space. According to a recent statement from the company, they are now able to offer fully built satellites to their customer base.

According to Rocket Lab, the goal of this technology is to take away the stress of manufacturing these complex devices from smaller companies that provide satellite services.

“Small satellite operators want to focus on providing data or services from space, but building satellite hardware is a significant barrier to achieving this,” said Rocket Lab founder and chief executive Peter Beck, in a statement.

“The time, resources and expertise required to build hardware can draw small satellite operators away from their core purpose, delaying their path to orbit and revenue. As the turn-key solution for complete small satellite missions, Rocket Lab brings space within easy reach. We enable our customers to focus on their payload and mission – we look after the rest.”

Rocket Lab has designed the satellites for a variety of Low Earth Orbit missions. These include technology demonstrations, risk reduction pathfinders, constellations, and hosted payloads. The satellites can stay in orbit for 5 years and include a S-Band communication system, high-performance altitude controls, and a set of avionics tools for in-space propulsion and movement.

The new satellites are going to be manufactured in the United States at Rocket Lab, Huntington Beach, California, headquarters and can be launched from their Electron launch platform. They have already scheduled their first launch for later in this year and Rocket Labs will hold its first paying customer missions in 2020.

Sources:

https://techcrunch.com/2019/04/08/rocket-lab-adds-satellite-manufacturing-to-its-offerings/

https://www.engadget.com/2019/04/08/rocket-labs-photon-satellite-platform/