[[Home|🏠]] <span style="color: LightSlateGray">></span> <span class="no-hover">[[Launches]]</span> <span style="color: LightSlateGray">></span> 021 - It's A Little Chile Up Here
>[!success] Mission Success
Rocket Lab launched a dedicated mission for the United States Space Force (USSF) and deployed a single research and development satellite to low Earth orbit.
Rocket Lab carried the Monolith satellite for the USSF's Space Test Program (STP) to space to explore and demonstrate the use of a deployable sensor, where the sensor’s mass is a substantial fraction of the total mass of the spacecraft, changing the spacecraft’s dynamic properties and testing ability to maintain spacecraft attitude control. Analysis from the use of a deployable sensor aims to enable the use of smaller satellite buses when building future deployable sensors such as weather satellites, thereby reducing the cost, complexity, and development timelines.
The mission was named ‘It’s a Little Chile Up Here’ in a nod to the beloved green chile of New Mexico where the Space Test Program is based. ‘It’s a Little Chile Up Here’ was Rocket Lab’s fourth launch for the year and the company’s 21st Electron launch overall.
[📸 Mission Photo Album](https://www.flickr.com/photos/rocketlab/albums/72177720301764530/)
#electron #launch #success
| **Mission Name** | It's A Little Chile Up Here |
| ---------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Launch Date** | 2021-07-29 06:00 |
| **Outcome** | ✅ Success |
| **Customer** | [[U.S. Space Force]] |
| **Location** | [[Launch Complex 1#Launch Pad A]] |
| **Vehicle** | [[Electron]] |
| **Orbit Type** | [[🌍 Orbits#LEO]] |
| **Target Orbit** | 600 km | 37° |
| **Payload Mass** | Unknown |
| **Recovery** | No Attempt |
| **Mission Link** | [It's A Little Chile Up Here](https://www.rocketlabusa.com/missions/missions-launched/its-a-little-chile-up-here/) |
| **Press Kit** | [Press Kit PDF](https://rocketlabcorp.com/assets/Uploads/Rocket-Lab-Its-A-Little-Chile-Up-Here-Press-Kit-sml.pdf) |
![[Pasted image 20250406135406.png|300]]
## Launch Video
<div class="responsive-video">
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XEAKezzYi4Q" title="Rocket Lab's Electron - It's A Little Chile Up Here 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, [[021 - It's A Little Chile Up Here]])
sort published desc
```
%%
| File | Published |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------- |
| [[News/Rocket Lab Successfully Launches U.S. Space Force Mission.md\|Rocket Lab Successfully Launches U.S. Space Force Mission]] | July 29, 2021 |
| [[News/Rocket Lab to Launch U.S. Space Force Mission from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand.md\|Rocket Lab to Launch U.S. Space Force Mission from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand]] | July 27, 2021 |
%%DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: end %%