Some interesting Rocket Lab numbers as we head into 2024:

• $515 Million dollar contract to build 18 spacecraft for the U.S. government won in December
• New annual launch record with 10th Electron mission this year
• 42 Electron launches from the U.S. and New Zealand
• 22 Electron missions booked for 2024 - (9 recovery / 11 standard / 2 HASTE)
• 1 HASTE mission completed successfully in 2023
• 6 additional HASTE missions booked through 2025
• 172 satellites launched by Electron
• 1700+ satellites on orbit and launched vehicles with Rocket Lab components including the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s Psyche mission, Cygnus, and the Ingenuity Mars helicopter.
• 150+ cumulative years in space for Rocket Lab technology
• 37 Photon kick stages deployed to orbit
• 4 Photon spacecraft operating in orbit
• 90+ missions flown with Sinclair by Rocket Lab designed and built flight hardware
• 212 cumulative years in space for Max Flight Software
• 1000+ satellites in orbit powered by Solareo products
• 415 satellites scheduled to launch with Solaero hardware
• 4MW of Solaero solar cells manufactured to date
• 2 Rocket Lab Photon spacecraft in development for 2024 Mars missions
• 1 satellite (CAPSTONE) placed in lunar orbit by Electron and a Rocket Lab’s Lunar Photon spacecraft
• 8 Electron rockets recovered via ocean recovery
• 1 recovered Rutherford engine re-flown
• 3 dedicated launch sites in the U.S. and New Zealand (the world’s first private, FAA-licensed orbital launch site)
• 6 U.S. states with Rocket Lab facilities
• 14 Rocket Lab Interplanetary and lunar missions
• 132 launch slots available annually
• Rocket Lab’s PSC separation systems have a 100% mission success rate over 20 years

And then there are the recent additions on the ground:

• Estimated $100M In Virgin Orbit production space and hardware acquired for $16M
• Secured lease of 113,000 square-foot former Vertical Launch Building at Lockheed Martin’s historic Middle River, Maryland production facility
• Acquired SailGP Technologies’ 70,000 square foot composite development and manufacturing complex in Warkworth and onboarded 90% of their New Zealand based staff

There’s more of course. This doesn’t even touch on progress made on Neutron. And the company has other things cooking which haven’t been shared just yet.

Many people, even those who follow the industry, still think of Rocket Lab as simply some scrappy small launch provider. Nearly everyone massively over-indexes on launch when they evaluate the company. While launch is the sexiest part of the business for observers, it’s most important as an enabler and differentiator that truly allows the space systems side and (ultimately) space services/applications side of the business to shine rather than the ultimate business objective itself. This nugget from their 2022 investor day event says it all:

“…more than 38% of globally addressable launches in 2021 had spacecraft on them featuring technology created by Rocket Lab companies. Even if it’s not launched on Electron, if it’s in space, there’s a good chance it has a Rocket Lab logo. Rocket Lab, more than just rockets in this lab.

And that is how you build a multi-generational space company.