Owl Around The World
Owl Around The World was a Rocket Lab Electron mission for Synspective that launched successfully at 12:01 UTC on 2 September 2026 (12:01 a.m. NZST on 3 September; 8:01 a.m. EDT on 2 September) from Launch Complex 1B on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula.
12:01 UTC on 2 September 2026 · 12:01 a.m. NZST on 3 September · 8:01 a.m. EDT on 2 September
Mission State
This mission currently has a dated launch window in the tracker.
The primary watch link points to an official Rocket Lab source.
Launch Updates
-
Launch success with satellite in operation.
by Cosmic_Penguin Source: synspective.com -
Spacecraft separation.
by Cosmic_Penguin Source: youtube.com -
Liftoff.
by Cosmic_Penguin Source: youtube.com
Updates via Launch Library 2 (The Space Devs).
Name Origin
The name puns on 'all around the world' with 'Owl,' alluding to the Strix owl genus that names Synspective's StriX satellites and their global Earth-observation mission.
Mission Overview
Synthetic aperture radar satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company Synspective.
In the news
- Rocket Lab launches 11th Synspective satellite (opens in a new tab) SpaceNews
Rocket Lab launched an 11th satellite for Japanese radar-imaging company Synspective on September 2.
Technical Details
40
kiwis- Owl Around The World rocketlabcorp.com
Launch data cross-checked against Wikipedia.
Was this a jellyfish launch?
UnlikelySun 58° below the horizon at liftoff — full night, the plume stays in Earth's shadow.
Details
- Unlikely
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Liftoff
- 12:01 a.m. NZST · 12:01 UTC
- Sunset
- 5:46 p.m. NZST · 05:46 UTC
- Civil dusk (−6°)
- 6:13 p.m. NZST · 06:13 UTC
- Nautical dusk (−12°)
- 6:44 p.m. NZST · 06:44 UTC
- Astronomical dusk (−18°)
- 7:15 p.m. NZST · 07:15 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.
Space-Object Catalog
| Object | Operator | Built by | Mass | Orbit | Status | NORAD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EOS-05 (GISAT-1A) 2026-202A · Payload | Operator — | Built by — | Mass — | Orbit 35,781 × 35,793 km · 3.5° | Status On orbit | NORAD 100607 |
GSLV R/B 2026-202B · Stage | Operator — | Built by — | Mass — | Orbit 132 × 30,138 km · 19.2° | Status On orbit | NORAD 100608 |
