Christine Thropp
Rocket Lab has secured a contract with HawkEye 360 to send 15 radio frequency monitoring satellites to low Earth orbit using the Electron launch vehicle.
Three Electron missions will be conducted from late 2022 to 2024, with the first delivering three satellites to orbit followed by two, six-spacecraft launches to expand HawkEye 360’s constellation, Rocket Lab said Tuesday.
The initial deployment is scheduled no earlier than December and will mark the launch and space systems company’s first use of Launch Complex 2 on Wallops Island, Virginia, to send the Electron small orbital launch vehicle to space.
“[Rocket Lab’s flexible] service will drive down our revisit rates in midlatitude AOIs, bringing a higher density of data to our customers,” said Rob Rainhart, chief operating officer of HawkEye 360.
The Virginia-based RF geospatial analytics provider employs its satellite constellation and analytical tools and algorithms to deliver insights to government and industry customers in support of their monitoring and emergency response efforts.
Rocket Lab will also provide HawkEye 360 with Planetary Systems-made separation systems as part of the multi-launch contract.
