Rocket Lab launches rocket with a 3D printed engine

Just over two years ago, the California based startup ‘Rocket Lab’ announced that they had developed the world’s first battery-powered rocket. This same Electron rocket is now here, and incorporates a 3D printed Rutherford engine with with the aim of heading to outer space. Luckily for them, after having a 10 day window that began on May 22 to launch their rocket off of their launch pad located off of the Mahia peninsula, the fruit of their labor finally came together, as the company was able to launch their rocket yesterday. This launch was a big deal as it was the first launch attempt for the country, as New Zealand has no space travel program of their own.

Rocket Lab is a private aviation company that has been supported by many high-tech companies such as Lockheed Martin, and have received a $75 million investment earlier this year, making their startup’s investment total a whopping $148 million, with a value of around $1 billion by private investors. With their launch, this is seen as being a success for New Zealand and the startup itself, but also for 3D printing, as the engine of the rocket is made almost entirely from additive manufacturing. The engineers of the rocket relied on this technology as it not only saves time, but also lowers weight, which is a considerable importance when it comes to the aerospace industry.

The test will take place on a small peninsula in the east of New Zealand

Standing at 17m tall and 1.2m in diameter, this fully loaded rocket came to a total weight of 10.5 tons. The launch of the rocket was carried out in two stages. In the first stage, the nine Rutherford engines providing the thrust with the second stage using a single vacuum-optimized engine. Before launching, the team came up with the test goals for the rocket. Running under the codename of “It’s a Test”, the rockets test consisted of the rocket carrying an inert payload to an 83-degree, elliptical orbit that was varied between 300 and 500 kilometers high.