On January 29, another Electron rocket, manufactured by Rocket Lab, was launched. It carried a new Korean satellite, NEONSAT-1A, into orbit. The satellite is designed to capture high-resolution images.
Launch of the Electron rocket
On January 29, 2026, at 8:21 p.m. Eastern (2:21 p.m. local time), Rocket Lab launched its Electron rocket from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand. The launch was successful, placing a new South Korean satellite into orbit.
Initially, the launch was scheduled for December 2025, but it had to be postponed. Even today’s launch was supposed to take place at 7:55 p.m. Eastern (2:55 a.m. local time), but it had to be stopped. However, the New Zealand company still achieved success.
What almost ended in failure unexpectedly turned into a victory. This is the second Electron launch in 2026. The first took place on January 22, when two Open Cosmos series spacecraft were launched into orbit. According to Rocket Lab management, two successful launches in one month is a good start to the year.
NEONSAT satellite
This is the second satellite in the NEONSAT series, developed by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). The first one was launched into space back in 2024. In total, the constellation should consist of 11 satellites.
All of them will be in a sun-synchronous orbit passing over the Earth’s poles. Its altitude will be 540 km. The main task of the satellite will be to obtain high-resolution images of the Earth’s surface. The main focus will be on the Korean Peninsula.
According to spacenews.com
