Overview
- Electron lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 03:09 UTC on Dec. 14 (10:09 p.m. Eastern, Dec. 13) and deployed RAISE‑4 into a 540‑kilometer sun‑synchronous orbit.
- RAISE‑4 is a 110‑kilogram technology demonstrator hosting eight experiments that include propulsion, communications and a drag‑sail deorbit system.
- The mission is the first under a two‑launch JAXA contract with Rocket Lab, with a second Electron dedicated to eight cubesats targeted for early 2026.
- RAISE‑4 had been slated to fly on Japan’s Epsilon‑S, which has been grounded since a 2022 failure and further delayed by solid motor test issues.
- Rocket Lab reordered its manifest around this flight and says the next Electron mission is planned from Wallops Island’s Launch Complex 2, with navigational warnings posted for Dec. 18–23.