Rocket Lab Successfully Launches 10th Mission for BlackSky with Deployment of Next-Generation Gen-3 Satellite
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB), a global leader in launch services and space systems, has successfully completed its 65th Electron mission, titled ‘Full Stream Ahead,’ further cementing its role as a dependable partner in space-based intelligence and Earth observation. The mission deployed a next-generation Gen-3 Earth-imaging satellite for longtime customer BlackSky, reinforcing the companies’ ongoing collaboration in advancing real-time geospatial intelligence capabilities.
Precision Launch from Mahia, New Zealand
The ‘Full Stream Ahead’ mission lifted off from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1, situated on the Māhia Peninsula in New Zealand, at 11:57 a.m. NZST on June 3 (23:57 UTC, June 2). The Electron rocket performed a flawless ascent, placing BlackSky’s Gen-3 satellite into a targeted 470-kilometer circular low Earth orbit. This precision insertion continues Electron’s track record as one of the most consistently successful small launch vehicles in commercial use.
A key component of the mission’s success was the use of Rocket Lab’s proprietary Motorized Lightband separation system, which has been employed in every BlackSky launch aboard Electron to date. This mechanism ensured the safe and efficient deployment of the satellite from the rocket’s upper stage, highlighting Rocket Lab’s vertically integrated approach to both launch and satellite support systems.
Strategic Deployment of BlackSky’s Gen-3 Satellite
This launch marks the second of four planned missions in 2025 to expand BlackSky’s Gen-3 satellite constellation. It is also the tenth time BlackSky has selected Electron to launch one of its satellites, underscoring the operational trust and strategic alignment between the two companies.
BlackSky’s Gen-3 satellites represent a significant technological upgrade, designed to capture images with improved resolution, increased sensitivity, and faster data delivery. These satellites enhance BlackSky’s capability to deliver real-time geospatial intelligence services to a wide range of commercial and government customers.
“With each successive launch BlackSky expands on-orbit capacity, introduces Gen-3 capabilities and furthers our ability to meet the demands of the most time-dominant missions,” said Brian O’Toole, CEO of BlackSky. “Our partnership with Rocket Lab has demonstrated exceptional agility in deploying capacity where and when our customers need it most.”
Accelerated Cadence Demonstrates Operational Maturity
The ‘Full Stream Ahead’ mission took place just 16 days after Rocket Lab’s previous Electron launch from the same complex. This rapid cadence of successful missions in such close succession highlights Rocket Lab’s growing capacity for high-frequency orbital access.
As of this launch, Rocket Lab has completed seven successful missions in 2025 alone and a total of 65 Electron launches since the vehicle’s debut in 2017. The total number of payloads delivered to orbit by Electron now stands at 226—a notable achievement for a launch vehicle designed specifically to serve the small satellite market.
“Another successful mission to add to Electron’s already stellar track record of providing reliable orbital access for constellation developers across the globe,” said Sir Peter Beck, Rocket Lab’s founder and CEO. “We’re laser-focused on delivering an increasing cadence of regular and reliable dedicated access to space for small satellite operators with Electron, and looking forward to continuing to deploy BlackSky’s constellation with more Electron launches in the months to come.”
A Decade-Defining Collaboration
The relationship between Rocket Lab and BlackSky has been pivotal in defining the evolving role of responsive launch services in the NewSpace economy. Since their first joint mission in 2019, the companies have collaborated to advance on-demand Earth observation, creating a model for how commercial satellite operators and agile launch providers can work together to fulfill rapidly evolving mission requirements.
This enduring partnership is especially relevant in an age where global events—from geopolitical crises to natural disasters—require near-instantaneous data acquisition and analysis. BlackSky’s platform fuses satellite imagery with artificial intelligence to deliver actionable intelligence to users within minutes, a capability increasingly vital to both defense and disaster response agencies around the world.
Rocket Lab’s Expanding Service Portfolio
While Electron remains the backbone of Rocket Lab’s current launch service offering, the company is also progressing on development of its larger, reusable Neutron rocket, which is designed to carry heavier payloads and support future interplanetary missions. In parallel, Rocket Lab continues to expand its presence in space systems manufacturing, satellite components, and spacecraft design.
Its vertically integrated approach enables Rocket Lab to provide end-to-end space solutions—from the production of key satellite hardware to the launch and deployment of payloads in orbit. The successful use of the Motorized Lightband on ‘Full Stream Ahead’ is a prime example of how Rocket Lab leverages its own technologies to support customer missions from ground to orbit.
Rocket Lab’s continued support of BlackSky’s Gen-3 constellation deployment marks a significant chapter in the evolution of commercial space services. With two more missions scheduled for 2025 under their current agreement, BlackSky is poised to further expand its capabilities while Rocket Lab strengthens its reputation as a reliable, rapid-response launch provider.
The pace, reliability, and precision of the ‘Full Stream Ahead’ mission reaffirm Rocket Lab’s status as a leader in small satellite launch services. As the company continues to scale operations and innovate across space systems, its role in enabling responsive, high-resolution Earth observation becomes ever more essential.
Quick Stats:
- Mission Name: Full Stream Ahead
- Customer: BlackSky
- Payload: One Gen-3 Earth-imaging satellite
- Orbit: 470 km circular low Earth orbit
- Launch Site: Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Mahia, New Zealand
- Time of Launch: June 3, 2025, 11:57 a.m. NZST
- Total Electron Launches: 65
- Total Payloads Delivered by Electron: 226
Watch the Launch Replay: Rocket Lab – Full Stream Ahead Launch Webcast (YouTube)
Launch Photos: Rocket Lab Flickr – Full Stream Ahead
About Rocket Lab
Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company with an established track record of mission success. We deliver reliable launch services, satellite manufacture, spacecraft components, and on-orbit management solutions that make it faster, easier, and more affordable to access space. Headquartered in Long Beach, California, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron small orbital launch vehicle, a family of flight-proven spacecraft, and the Company is developing the large Neutron launch vehicle for constellation deployment.
Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle has become the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually and has delivered more than 200 satellites to orbit for private and public sector organizations, enabling operations in national security, scientific research, space debris mitigation, Earth observation, climate monitoring, and communications. Rocket Lab’s Photon spacecraft platform has been selected to support NASA missions to the Moon and Mars, as well as the first private commercial mission to Venus. Rocket Lab has three launch pads at two launch sites, including two launch pads at a private orbital launch site located in New Zealand and a third launch pad in Virginia. To learn more, visit www.rocketlabcorp.com.
