Rocket Lab Corp., a rapidly growing company that launches diverse payloads into space, will be sending up two rockets for the Japanese space agency, the latest in a trio of recent contract wins for the Long Beach-based company.
Rocket Lab, which moved its headquarters from Huntington Beach in 2020, has become a major player in the new space race, rivaling companies such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Rocket Lab’s share price has climbed almost 180% this year alone amid a boom in space travel that has also benefited Orange County companies.
Shares in Rocket Lab (Nasdaq: RKLB) were trading at $70.61 apiece for a market cap of $34 billion on Oct. 15, jumping from $9.98 just a year ago.
Among other local companies in the space field are satellite maker ICEYE of Irvine, components maker Karman Holdings of Huntington Beach and space tourism company Virgin Galactic of Tustin.
No Worries About Demand
Rocket Lab founder and CEO, Peter Beck, says the company is showing a “big step-up in cadence” for launches this year.
He sees demand for his company’s Electron rockets continuing to grow.
“I worry about a lot of things at night,” but demand is not one of them, he told CNBC on June 30.
Despite the recent success, the company’s net loss widened almost 60% to $66.4 million in the second quarter. Revenue is expected to grow to between $145 million and $155 million in the third quarter up 43% from a year ago.
On Oct. 10, Rocket Lab said it had signed a contract for two dedicated Electron launches with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
Launching from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand, the two Electron missions will deploy satellites for the agency’s Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration Program. The first launch is scheduled for December, with the second in 2026.
Rocket Lab on Oct. 7 announced it had signed a multi-launch deal with Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space Inc., called iQPS. That makes Rocket Lab the primary launch provider to deploy the Japanese company’s commercial Earth-imaging constellation.
Sets Schedule for 21-Launch Series
Rocket Lab said the launch window for its next mission for Japanese satellite company Synspective opened on Oct. 14.
The mission, named “Owl New World,” launched that day from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand.
“Owl New World” is Rocket Lab’s seventh launch for Synspective and is the next launch in a series of 21 upcoming missions to deploy the company’s Earth-imaging constellation before the end of the decade.
