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Rocket Lab@RocketLab · Sep 24, 2026

Think Rocket Lab only operates in low Earth orbit? Think again. When a spacecraft orbits the Moon, touches down on the…

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Summary

Rocket Lab provides critical technology for deep space exploration missions beyond low Earth orbit, including launch vehicles, spacecraft, solar power systems, and robotics supporting NASA missions to the Moon and Mars like CAPSTONE, ESCAPADE, Artemis, and Perseverance.

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  1. #1

    Think Rocket Lab only operates in low Earth orbit? Think again. When a spacecraft orbits the Moon, touches down on the lunar surface, or charts a course across deep space to Mars, there's a strong chance Rocket Lab technology helped it get there and deliver mission success. Through our launch, spacecraft, solar power, separation systems, software, operations, and robotics solutions, we’re proud to support historic planetary exploration missions across the solar system. 🧵👇

  2. #2

    CAPSTONE (Moon) Rocket Lab launched the CAPSTONE spacecraft for @NASA in June 2022, setting it on course for a unique near-rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO) around the Moon. The launch was powered by Electron, while the critical trans-lunar injection was carried out by our Lunar Photon spacecraft, one of the earliest operational designs in Rocket Lab’s family of spacecraft.

  3. #3

    ESCAPADE (Mars) Rocket Lab designed and built twin interplanetary spacecraft - "Blue" and "Gold" - for @NASA and @UCBerkeley's @escapade_mars mission. Built on our Explorer spacecraft platform, these probes carry Rocket Lab flight computers, star trackers, reaction wheels, and solar arrays to travel millions of miles to Mars orbit to investigate how the solar wind strips away the Martian atmosphere.

  4. #4

    Artemis (Moon) Under contract with @LockheedMartin, thousands of Rocket Lab’s high-efficiency space-grade solar cell assemblies have powered, or will power, all of the Orion spacecraft for the @NASAArtemis missions. Our cells are integrated into Orion’s four European Service Module solar array wings. Rocket Lab technology also deployed the secondary deep space payloads on Artemis I: our Canisterized Satellite Dispensers (CSDs), developed by Planetary Systems Corporation, were installed inside the SLS Orion Stage Adapter to cleanly eject 6U CubeSats into lunar and deep-space trajectories.

  5. #5

    Martian Surface Robotics: Perseverance (Mars) Rocket Lab Robotics hardware is actively operating on Mars aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover. Motiv Space Systems, acquired by Rocket Lab this year, designed and built Perseverance’s primary 2-meter, 5-joint robotic arm that positions coring tools directly against Martian rock faces using a 6-DOF force-torque sensor for sampling, and delivered the opto-mechanical system inclusive of zoom, focus, and filter-wheel for the Mastcam-Z science cameras.

  6. #6

    GRAIL & LADEE (Moon) Motorized Lightband (MLB) separation technology from Planetary Systems Corporation, acquired by Rocket Lab in 2021, supported @NASA's GRAIL and LADEE lunar missions. These flight-proven, non-pyrotechnic mechanisms provide controlled, low-shock separation between spacecraft and launch-vehicle elements to safeguard delicate science instruments.

  7. #7

    Solar Power on the Red Planet: Ingenuity, InSight, and Perseverance (Mars) SolAero, acquired by Rocket Lab in 2022, has powered several landmark Mars exploration missions, including: - Ingenuity Mars Helicopter: Powered by our solar panel — populated with ultra-lightweight, 33% efficient Inverted Metamorphic Multijunction (IMM) solar cells — mounted atop its rotor blades. - InSight Lander: Our high-efficiency solar panels powered Northrop Grumman's UltraFlex solar arrays in support of the lander's seismic operations on the Martian surface. - Mars 2020 Cruise Stage: Our solar panels kept Perseverance powered and healthy during its months-long transit to Mars.

  8. #8

    Lunar Surface Robotics (Moon) Rocket Lab supported @FireflySpace's Blue Ghost lunar lander with our MAX Flight and MAX Ground Data Software suites, alongside trajectory design and backup mission operations support. We also provided the high-efficiency solar panels that powered the Blue Ghost spacecraft that successfully landed on the Mare Cirsium on the lunar surface. Motiv Space Systems (now Rocket Lab Robotics) also developed the lightweight chassis, mobility actuators, and motor control electronics for @NASA's CADRE autonomous lunar rovers. Currently, we are developing a single-axis scanning gimbal with integrated avionics for the EMILIA-3D PRISM payload, an instrument designed to produce high-resolution 3D thermal maps of the Moon.

  9. #9

    @NASA @UCBerkeley @escapade_mars @LockheedMartin @NASAArtemis @FireflySpace Read more: rocketlabcorp.com/updates/beyond…