Rocket Lab Electron lifts off in December 2025. Photo: Chris Leymaries
2026 promises to be the most transformative year in American spaceflight since the Apollo era. From Artemis II astronauts circling the Moon to the first commercial space stations, here’s what’s coming.
In a flawless early-morning liftoff, Rocket Lab successfully deployed four disk-shaped satellites into a very low earth orbit. The mission, named “Don’t Be Such a Square,” was Rocket Lab’s first public mission from Wallops in well over a year.
Aside from the launchpads at KSC and Vandenberg, MARS, or the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, is the third busiest launch site in the United States. MARS, also called Wallops Flight Facility (WFF), offers different launch trajectories that are not available at Florida launch sites. Typically, Wallops supports the launch and recovery of sounding rockets, which are small payloads compared to what is launched in Florida.
Rocket Lab's latest HASTE mission lifted off from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia at 8AM on Tuesday, November 18th. The mission, initially known only as "VAN", was later announced as "Prometheus Run." Electron transits the sun.…
Rocket Lab Electron launches 'Justin' as part of its HASTE program.Photo: Chris Leymarie, Florida Media Now New Zealand-based launcher Rocket Lab launched one its Electron rockets from Wallops Island, Virginia tonight in support of The Hypersonic…
