Rocket Lab’s Electron vehicle will resume ferrying satellites and other payloads to space this month. The FAA has given the company the go-ahead to launch Electron rockets again after figuring out why its 13th mission ended in failure. In early July, Rocket Lab’s “Pics Or It Didn’t Happen” mission resulted in the loss of both the rocket and its satellite payloads, including a Canon satellite that was supposed to demonstrate an Earth imaging camera system before it enters mass production. The company launched an investigation with the FAA and managed to pinpoint the culprit: an anomalous electrical connection.
Apparently, one of the rocket’s electrical connections was “intermittently secure through flight,” increasing resistance and causing the component to heat up and expand. That, in turn, caused surrounding components to liquefy, which led to the electrical system’s disconnection and ultimately to the engine’s shutdown a few minutes into the second stage burn.