Rocket Lab has added satellite manufacturing to its list of services which are being rendered to its customers who need access to space for data & other related services. Amongst the NewSpace category of companies, Rocket Lab is a big name and is one of the biggest startups providing launch and satellite services.
After having developed launch capabilities and successfully delivering payloads into space, it can now deliver fully built satellites to its customers so that they do not have to build their own satellites and can be facilitated through the “Photon” satellite platform of the company.
Peter Beck, founder and Chief Executive, Rocket Lab; in a statement said, “Small satellite operators want to focus on providing data or services from space, but building satellite hardware is a significant barrier to achieving this.”
He further went on to say “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.”
Technology demonstrations, risk reduction pathfinders, constellations, and hosted payloads which are Low Earth Orbit missions will be covered by these satellites, which will stay in the orbit for 5 years and will be comprised of an S-band communication system, high-performance attitude controls, and a set of avionics tools which is going to aid in-space propulsion and movement.
The company is expecting its first paying customer mission to be launched in 2020 in the 1st quarter of the year. The satellites have the ability to launch from the company’s Electron launch platform. The manufacture of the satellites will be done at Rocket Labs’ Huntington Beach, Calif.
