NROL-199 Launch Prepped by Rocket Lab
A second National Reconnaissance Office launch … NROL-199 … is being prepared by Rocket Lab with the launch window opening tomorrow at 0500 UTC (0100 EDT).
The NROL-199 (“Antipodean Adventure”) mission is scheduled to lift-off from Pad B at Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1. This Electron mission follows on from an earlier successful launch for the NRO on July 12, 2022, which deployed the NROL-162 national security payload to orbit.
The NROL-199 mission will launch a national security payload designed, built, and operated by the NRO in partnership with the Australian Department of Defense as part of a broad range of cooperative satellite activities with Australia. The satellites will support the NRO to provide critical information to government agencies and decision makers monitoring international issues.
The mission was originally scheduled for lift-off on July 22, but the launch was rescheduled to allow the NRO additional time to implement required payload software updates. This schedule shift demonstrated Rocket Lab’s responsive space capabilities, which provide customers with a high degree of flexibility over their mission, including orbit and launch timing. By operating a private launch complex, Rocket Lab doesn’t have to wait in a launch queue behind other operators and could instead quickly reschedule the launch to suit the NRO’s preferred timeline.
“Antipodean Adventure” launch details:
Launch Window Opens: August 02, 05:00 UTC
Launch vehicle: Electron
Customer: National Reconnaissance Office
Launch site: Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Pad B
Mission type: Dedicated
Payload: NROL-199
Both NROL-199 and NROL-162 missions are a demonstration of responsive launch under NRO’s Rapid Acquisition of a Small Rocket (RASR) contract for launching small satellite through a streamlined, commercial approach, and are the third and fourth missions contracted to Rocket Lab by the NRO under the contract. NROL-151 (RASR-1) was successfully deployed to space on a dedicated Electron launch in early 2020, followed by RASR-2 on another Electron launch in June 2020.
(Image provided with Rocket Lab news release)