T -00:00:05 · MAHIA LAUNCH COMPLEX 1

Rocket Lab · Mahia, New Zealand

From Aotearoa
to orbit

You watched it from Te Mata Peak, Hawke's Bay —
a Rocket Lab Electron streaking into the southern night.
This is the story of NZ's most audacious rocket company.

By the numbers

Electron, in figures

55+
Launches from NZ
The Mahia Peninsula launch complex has made New Zealand one of the most active small-sat launch destinations on Earth.
17m
Electron height
Small but mighty — Electron stands just 17 metres tall yet can deliver 300 kg to low Earth orbit.
9
Rutherford engines (stage 1)
The world's first 3D-printed, electrically-pumped rocket engines — designed and built in Auckland.

Mission timeline

What you watched
from Te Mata Peak

From 399 metres above Hawke's Bay, the view across to Mahia Peninsula — about 90 km north — is one of the best vantage points on the East Coast. On a clear night, the entire ascent profile is visible to the naked eye.

T-0:00
Ignition — liftoff
Nine Rutherford engines light. The pad at LC-1 glows orange as Electron lifts from Mahia. From Te Mata you see a star appear on the northern horizon.
T+0:58
Max-Q (maximum dynamic pressure)
The rocket hits peak aerodynamic stress at ~12 km altitude — still visible, climbing steeply, the exhaust plume brightening and widening.
T+2:30
Stage separation
A brief double-flash in the sky as stage one separates. The second stage Curie engine lights — a smaller, dimmer dot continues upward.
T+3:00
Fairing jettison
The payload fairing halves tumble away above 100 km. You may see a faint momentary brightness as sunlight catches the spinning halves.
T+8:00
Orbit achieved
Electron is now ~500 km above Earth, moving at 7.5 km/s. The streak has faded from view — but it's up there, among the stars you can see above Te Mata.

Geography

The view from
Hawke's Bay

New Zealand's East Coast geography makes it uniquely suited for southward polar and sun-synchronous orbit launches — without flying over populated land masses.

Mahia LC-1 Launch complex Te Mata Peak Your vantage point Auckland Wellington Christchurch ↑ N
Launch complex Your viewpoint Ascent trajectory

Kiwi origins

Born in a garage
in Auckland

Peter Beck founded Rocket Lab in 2006, building rocket engines in his garage in Māngere, South Auckland. The company's early propulsion work was funded partly by his day job at Fisher & Paykel.

In 2009, Rocket Lab became the first private company in the Southern Hemisphere to reach space, launching the Atea-1 sounding rocket from Great Mercury Island. By 2017, Electron made its maiden flight from Mahia — the world's first private orbital launch site.

The Mahia Peninsula was chosen for its isolation, open ocean to the east and south for downrange safety, and proximity to sun-synchronous orbit insertion trajectories — plus, importantly, the generosity of the Māhia landowners who leased the peninsula for the pad.

Rutherford engine
The Rutherford is the world's first rocket engine to use electric-pump-fed propellant (LOX/RP-1) and the first to be 3D-printed for all primary components. It produces 24 kN of thrust and was designed and manufactured entirely in Auckland.
Electron reusability
Since 2020, Rocket Lab has been recovering Electron's first stage via helicopter catch — with a Sikorsky S-92 snagging the stage's parachute mid-air over the Pacific. Recovered stages have been refurbished and reflown.

Test your knowledge

Rocket Lab trivia