Posted: Mon, May 27, 2024, 10:05 AM ET (1405 GMT)
A Rocket Lab Electron successfully launched the first of two NASA Earth science cubesats Saturday. The Electron lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 3:41 sm EDT (0741 GMT) and placed the first Polar Radiant Energy in the Far-InfraRed Experiment (PREFIRE) cubesat into orbit. A second PREFIRE cubesat will be launched on another Electron within the next few weeks. The two cubesats, operating in Sun-synchronous orbits, will measure infrared emissions at the Earth's poles to improve climate models. The launch, the 48th by the Electron, took place seven years to the day after the first Electron launch.

Related Links:

•  SpaceNews article
•  CNN article
•  Space.com article
•  NASA press release