Live coverage
Stream links and embedded coverage.
TMinusZero
Loading
Preparing the latest launch data.
Launch Detail
Loading launch detail
Pulling launch timing, vehicle context, weather signals, and mission evidence.
Launch detail
Rocket Lab • Electron • Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1A (NA)
Top answer
Synthetic aperture radar Earth observation satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company iQPS.
Last refreshed: Jul 29, 2026, 1:25 AM GMT+12. T-Minus Zero keeps this as the canonical launch record and reconciles schedule, mission, payload, media, and provider signals when those records are available.
Alternate mission URLs consolidate to this canonical launch record so exact mission timing, status, media, and source context stay on one page.
Stream links and embedded coverage.
Premium keeps the launch-by-launch change log visible so you can review slips, window edits, and status changes without waiting for an error-driven upgrade prompt.
Free-to-share photography matched to this launch. Tap a photo to view it at full resolution.
The Grain Goddess Provides PatchLinked via Spaceflight News API (SNAPI).
ArticleSeveral orbital launches are scheduled worldwide this week. A mission to rescue the Swift observatory… The post Launch Preview: Swift rescue mission, final...
ArticleST. LOUIS — Japan’s Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space, iQPS, plans to launch eight additional synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites through the end o...
Synthetic aperture radar Earth observation satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company iQPS.

Use these internal paths to move from this exact launch record into the provider, vehicle, launch-site, schedule, and mission-family pages that own broader context.
This launch currently has no dedicated mission-family hub, so provider, vehicle, site, and canonical record links are the primary internal paths.
Key structured fields for this launch record are grouped here so the page answers mission, payload, orbit, provider, source, and timing questions before the deeper tracking and media sections.
Open the launch pad in Google Maps satellite mode using the pad coordinates.
Synthetic aperture radar Earth observation satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company iQPS.
Electron is a two-stage orbital expendable launch vehicle (with an optional third stage) developed by the American aerospace company Rocket Lab. Electron is a small-lift launch vehicle designed to launch small satellites and cubesats to sun-synchronous orbit and low earth orbit. The Electron is the first orbital class rocket to use electric-pump-fed engines, powered by the 9 Rutherford engines on the first stage. It is also used as a suborbital testbed (called HASTE) for hypersonics research.
Rocket Lab is an American aerospace manufacturer with a wholly owned New Zealand subsidiary. The company develops lightweight, cost-effective commercial rocket launch services. The Electron Program was founded on the premise that small payloads such as CubeSats require dedicated small launch vehicles and flexibility not currently offered by traditional rocket systems. Its rocket, the Electron, is a light-weight rocket and is now operating commercially. The company is also producing a variety of spacecrafts and spacecrafts components.
Payload and object details are usually published 1–2 days after launch.
A launch-area reference planning index. Use your location for a viewpoint-specific result.
This viewing setup is refreshing because its saved inputs are no longer current. Check back shortly for the updated score.
This is a planning index, not a percent chance. Higher means the modeled viewing setup is stronger.
If needed, your browser asks permission only after you choose this. The launch-area result is not a forecast for your viewpoint.
This viewing setup is refreshing because its saved inputs are no longer current. Check back shortly for the updated score.
This outlook evaluates whether a broad, sunlit ascent plume could stand out. It does not yet predict whether a specific vehicle will produce one, and an unfavorable plume outlook does not mean the rocket itself will be invisible.
Provider, rocket, pad, and booster history tied to this launch.