Rocket Lab now builds customizable satellites

Small satellite launcher, Rocket Lab is launching in the manufacture of satellites in addition to their launch. The company announced today that it is offering a new service to its customers: a standard satellite that can be adapted to the needs of all companies in low Earth orbit. These satellites are designed to go into orbit on the Rocket Lab Electron rocket, creating a streamlined mission in space.

The Rocket Lab offer is a circular satellite called Photon. Capable of weighing up to 170 kilograms, it is equipped with propulsion, GPS, etc. The design of the satellite is inspired by the launch phase of Rocket Lab, a cylindrical spacecraft that the company places at the top of its rockets to give an extra boost to payloads in orbit. Until now, Rocket Lab has launched its launch phase four times, giving the company a good idea of ​​how the Photon could behave in space.

According to Peter Beck, CEO of Rocket Lab, the idea of ​​turning the satellite into a satellite was a natural step. "It always seemed strange to me that you have a [spacecraft] which has all the same components as the satellite literally six inches apart from each other, "Beck said The edge, referring to the Electron kick phase. "But we would not talk to each other and we would fend off, that would be the end. It seemed weird to do it rather than simply combine everything into one unit. "

The Photon project aims to create a standardized satellite that can easily transport customers' payload ideas. Satellite operators often need to build a complex spacecraft to host a specific sensor or camera that will collect data from the space. Rocket Lab hopes to support the manufacturing part of the spacecraft, thus allowing customers to simply add their payload to the design of an existing satellite. "People do not need to spend a lot of time becoming experts and building spacecraft to put their ideas into orbit," Beck says.

Image: Rocket Lab

The Photon concept is relatively similar to the CubeSat, a type of standardized satellite used by companies, researchers and universities to send their payloads into space. The CubeSat is a relatively small, box-shaped spacecraft measuring just under 4 inches on all sides. The boxes can be stacked on top of each other to create larger models, which usually have the size of a cereal box. The standardization of CubeSat's design – and the fact that it is relatively inexpensive to modify – has reduced the access bar to space, allowing more and more entrants to the satellite market .

According to Beck, the Photon will allow customers to do more types of missions than a CubeSat. "There is only a certain amount you can do with a CubeSat because your volume is limited," he says. CubeSats can weigh as little as three pounds, but the Photon will be over 100 times heavier. It will also measure approximately 4 feet wide – the total width of the Rocket Lab Electron rocket – thus providing more room for the addition of sensors and other types of instruments.

The Photon is also equipped with something that CubeSats can not handle: thrusters. Since the satellite is a kick scene modified by Rocket Lab, it uses the same propulsion: a 3D printed Curie engine developed by the company. This means that the satellite can maneuver into orbit, either by changing its altitude or by making modest adjustments to stay on track. It also has many other standard features that a satellite must have, such as GPS, a flight computer and all the necessary instruments to reorient the vehicle in space.

According to Beck, by offering both a satellite and a rocket to launch this satellite, the process of putting payloads into orbit will be much simpler. "Obtaining a one-stop shop can be very effective," he explains. Customers will not have to coordinate between different companies to make a satellite and then send it into space. Rocket Lab will take care of most details. Satellite operators simply have to introduce themselves and associate their payload with the satellite, then Rocket Lab will launch it. In addition, the Photon flight computer is the same as the electron one, ensuring that both vehicles will work together during the flight.

Image: Trevor Mahlmann

Beck refers to Rocket Lab's recently launched mission for DARPA that could have benefited from this approach. DARPA just wanted to test a new type of antenna, but had to build a brand new spacecraft to send this antenna in space. "If you're using Photon, just bring your antenna the size of a suitcase and lock it," he says. "It's done." It would take three to four months for such a mission to get from ground to orbit, Beck says.

Customers will likely have different options for operating Photon satellites while in orbit. They can take control of the spaceship or the Rocket Lab can make it work. The company already operates a network of ground stations to track its Electron rockets in flight. "We can do the ground segment for you; we can do the mission segment for you; we can do satellite management, "says Beck. "Or we can just hand over the spaceship and you can handle all your operations."

Rocket Lab will not provide an exact price for the Photon, arguing that its costs vary greatly depending on the type of payload that a customer wants to associate. In addition, the price will change according to the management of Rocket Lab. However, Beck claims that a launch of Electron starts at around $ 6 million, based on launches made by the company so far.

Rocket Lab already has two customers ready to use the Photon – a commercial operator and a government. The company plans to make its first demonstration flight of the Photon system later this year, but there will be no commercial satellite mission since the Rocket Lab manifest is complete for 2019.

Once the Photon platform is fully operational, Beck is considering many types of applications for the satellite, such as satellite television or Earth observation. It is even possible to use the Photon to transmit the internet from space, a concept that many companies like SpaceX, OneWeb and now Amazon are looking for. And for those who have chosen the Photon, the rocket is guaranteed. "We have a real advantage in that it is a rocket and a satellite in one."