Rocket Report: Starship RUDs on the way to space; Rocket Lab to reuse engine
Enlarge / Super Heavy ascends on a pillar of flame. (credit: SpaceX)
Welcome to Edition 5.34 of the Rocket Report! Wow, what a half year it has been for launch. In the last six months, we have seen the two most powerful rockets ever take flight, the Space Launch System and Starship. What a time for the industry and enthusiasts-the future looks so bright!
As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.
Rocket Lab will reuse a first stage engine. Rocket Lab said Wednesday it plans to refly a Rutherford rocket engine for the first time in the third quarter of this year. The 3D-printed engine, previously flown on the There and Back Again' mission launched in May 2022, has undergone extensive qualification and acceptance testing to certify it for re-flight. This includes multiple full mission-duration hot fires where the pre-flown engine performed as if it were a newly built one.