Mission

It’s a Little Chile Up Here

Name: Rocket Lab It’s a Little Chile Up Here Launch
Start: 2021-07-29T06:00:00.000Z
Location: Launch Complex 1A

Last Updated: 2 months ago

It’s a Little Chile Up Here was a Rocket Lab Electron mission for U.S. Space Force that launched successfully at 06:00 UTC on 29 July 2021 (6:00 p.m. NZST on 29 July; 2:00 a.m. EDT on 29 July) from Launch Complex 1A on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula.

SUCCESS

Orbit Achieved

U.S. Space Force

Vehicle

Electron

Launch Site

LC-1A

Orbit

Low Earth Orbit

Profile

Government/Top Secret

Thursday, July 29, 2021 06:00 AM UTC Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

06:00 UTC on 29 July 2021 · 6:00 p.m. NZST on 29 July · 2:00 a.m. EDT on 29 July

Watch the It’s a Little Chile Up Here launch replay (YouTube | RocketLabCorp)

Source: RocketLabCorp

Mission State

Schedule

Date and time on file

This mission currently has a dated launch window in the tracker.

Coverage

Official livestream linked

The primary watch link points to an official Rocket Lab source.

Launch Updates

29 Jul 2021 07:16 UTC

Launch success confirmed

by SwGustav Source: twitter.com
28 Jul 2021 01:30 UTC

New launch time

by Cosmic_Penguin Source: twitter.com
15 Nov 2020 08:50 UTC

Moved to 2021

by Nosu Source: spacenews.com

Updates via Launch Library 2 (The Space Devs).

Name Origin

This mission name playfully references the U.S. Space Force's payload: a replica of the Chilean flag being deployed into orbit. 'Little Chile' directly refers to this patriotic cargo.

"It’s a Little Chile Up Here"

Mission Overview

A U.S. Air Force experimental spacecraft. It will demonstrate the use of a deployable sensor, where the sensor’s mass is a substantial fraction of the total mass of the spacecraft and provide a platform to test future space protection capabilities.

Technical Details

Vehicle

Electron

Rocket Lab launch vehicle

Launch Site

Launch Complex 1A

LC-1A · Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

Target Orbit

Low Earth Orbit

Planned deployment regime

Mission Profile

Government/Top Secret

Mission architecture

Booster Recovery

Not attempted

First-stage recovery outcome

Pad Turnaround

74d 18h

Since the previous launch from this pad

Mission Links

https://www.rocketlabusa.com/assets/Uploads/Rocket-Lab-Its-A-Little-Chile-Up-Here-Press-Kit-sml.pdf
rocketlabusa.com
It's A Little Chile Up Here
rocketlabusa.com

Customer

U.S. Space Force

Mission customer

Launch data cross-checked against Wikipedia.

Was this a jellyfish launch?

High

Sun 8° below the horizon at liftoff — prime twilight.

Details

Unlikely
Low
Moderate
High

Liftoff: 6:00 p.m. NZST · 06:00 UTC
Sunset: 5:15 p.m. NZST · 05:15 UTC
Civil dusk (−6°): 5:44 p.m. NZST · 05:44 UTC
Nautical dusk (−12°): 6:16 p.m. NZST · 06:16 UTC
Astronomical dusk (−18°): 6:48 p.m. NZST · 06:48 UTC

Twilight times at the pad (Mahia, NZ) for the evening of the launch.

What's a rocket jellyfish? When a rocket launches in twilight, the ground is dark but its exhaust plume climbs into sunlight high above. The expanding plume glows against the dark sky in a jellyfish-like shape.

Example: Owl New World (RNZ)

Space-Object Catalog

2021-068

Flight 21 · Orbital · Success

3 tracked objects

Object	Operator	Built by	Mass	Orbit	Status	NORAD
Monolith 2021-068A · Payload	Operator USAF SMC/DoD Space Test Program	Built by US Air Force Research Laboratories/RV (Space Vehicles Directorate) Cubesat 12U?	Mass 20 kg	Orbit 534 × 538 km · 37.0°	Status On orbit	NORAD 49052
Electron 21 Stage 2 2021-068B · Stage	Operator Rocket Lab Ltd.	Built by Rocket Lab Ltd. Electron St2	Mass 250 kg	Orbit 159 × 194 km · 37.0°	Status Decayed 2021-11-15	NORAD 49053
Electron 21 Kick Stage 2021-068C · Stage	Operator Rocket Lab Ltd.	Built by Rocket Lab Ltd. Kick Stage	Mass 40 kg	Orbit 151 × 162 km · 37.0°	Status Decayed 2022-10-13	NORAD 49054