005 - DARPA R3D2 - RKLB Wiki

[[Home|🏠]] <span style="color: LightSlateGray">></span> <span class="no-hover">[[Launches]]</span> <span style="color: LightSlateGray">></span> 005 - DARPA R3D2 >[!success] Mission Success >[!summary] The DARPA R3D2 mission was Rocket Lab’s fifth mission and the company’s first launch of 2019. > The mission launched the R3D2 (Radio Frequency Risk Reduction Deployment Demonstration) payload for DARPA. R3D2 was a prototype reflect array antenna designed to improve radio communications in small spacecraft. > The R3D2 antenna, made of a tissue-thin Kapton membrane, packed tightly inside a small satellite for stowage during launch, before deploying to its full size of 2.25 meters in diameter once it reached low Earth orbit. By compacting a large antenna into a small satellite, the spacecraft can provide significant capability, negating the need for satellite owners to build large satellites that can only be launched as a ride-share payload on big rockets with significant price tags and lengthy delays. > The 150kg R3D2 satellite lifted off on an Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand’s Māhia Peninsula and was deployed to a 425kmx425km orbit at 39.5 degrees by Electron’s Kick Stage, a nimble upper stage designed to insert payloads with precise accuracy before deorbiting itself and leaving no space junk behind. #electron #launch #success | **Mission Name** | DARPA R3D2 | | ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Launch Date** | 2019-03-28 23:27 | | **Outcome** | ✅ Success | | **Customer** | [[DARPA]] | | **Location** | [[Launch Complex 1#Launch Pad A]] | | **Vehicle** | [[Electron]] | | **Orbit Type** | [[🌍 Orbits#LEO]] | | **Target Orbit** | 425 km | 39.5° | | **Payload Mass** | 150 kg | | **Recovery** | No Attempt | | **Mission Link** | [DARPA R3D2](https://www.rocketlabusa.com/missions/missions-launched/darpa-r3d2/) | | **Press Kit** | [Press Kit PDF](https://rocketlabcorp.com/assets/Uploads/Rocket-Lab-press-kit-DARPA-R3D4.pdf) | ## 📽️ Launch Video <div class="responsive-video"> <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TGhlWMJtDEI" title="Rocket Lab's Electron - DARPA R3D2 Mission" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe> </div> ## 📰 News %%DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: start ``` table published as "Published" from "News" where contains(mission, [[005 - DARPA R3D2]]) sort published desc ``` %% | File | Published | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------- | | [[News/Rocket Lab successfully launches R3D2 satellite for DARPA.md\|Rocket Lab successfully launches R3D2 satellite for DARPA]] | March 28, 2019 | | [[News/Rocket Lab to launch dedicated Electron mission for DARPA.md\|Rocket Lab to launch dedicated Electron mission for DARPA]] | January 22, 2019 | %%DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: end %%