Rocket Lab launches South Korean satellite

ORLANDO, Fla. — A Rocket Lab Electron launched a South Korean imaging satellite Jan. 29 on the rocket’s second flight of the year.

The Electron lifted off from the company’s Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 8:21 p.m. Eastern. The launch had been scheduled for 7:55 p.m. Eastern but was delayed when the countdown stopped about nine minutes before liftoff because of a technical issue that was later resolved.

The mission, dubbed “Bridging the Swarm,” had originally been scheduled for December. Rocket Lab scrubbed two earlier launch attempts, once because of a sensor issue and a second time when an abort was triggered at engine ignition.

The payload was NEONSAT-1A, built by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, or KAIST. The satellite was deployed into a 540-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit and is the second of a planned 11-satellite constellation designed to provide high-resolution imagery of the Korean Peninsula and surrounding regions. The first satellite, NEONSAT-1, launched on another Electron in 2024.

This was Rocket Lab’s second Electron launch of 2026, following a Jan. 22 mission that deployed two Open Cosmos satellites. “Two launches in eight days is a strong start to the year that speaks volumes about the demand for Electron and the excellence and dedication of the Rocket Lab team,” Rocket Lab Chief Executive Peter Beck said in a statement after the launch.

Rocket Lab conducted 21 Electron launches in 2025, including three of its suborbital variant, HASTE. The company has not disclosed how many Electron launches it plans this year, but Beck said in the statement that “we’re gearing up for an even busier launch year in 2026.”