For years, Rocket Lab has been trying to catch falling boosters with a helicopter, and now that’s done.
Tonight’s “Baby Come Back” mission launching at 9:27PM ET will attempt to deploy customer satellites and test a new parachute design that slows the booster on its return before it goes into the water for recovery, and according to the broadcasters on the stream, the company is “all in” on this method.
In addition to the primary mission of deploying customer satellites, Rocket Lab will attempt a marine recovery of Electron’s first stage. This will see Electron’s first stage return to Earth under parachute for a soft splashdown in the ocean before it is collected by vessel. The stage will be transported back to Rocket Lab’s production complex and analyzed to inform future recovery and reuse missions.
