
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
Rocket Lab launched a satellite for a mystery customer on Thursday morning (Nov. 20).
The liftoff, which occurred at 7:43 a.m. EST (1243 GMT) from Rocket Lab's New Zealand site, came as something of a surprise. The company formally announced the impending launch of its workhorse Electron rocket less than five hours ahead of time.
The mission, called "Follow My Speed" was a complete success, Rocket Lab announced via X on Thursday morning.
"Today's 'Follow My Speed' mission marks 18 launches with 100% mission success for 2025 — more than any other year in Electron's history — making our rocket the most frequently flown orbital small launch vehicle in the world," the company said in another Thursday X post.
Fifteen of those 18 launches have been orbital missions. The other three were suborbital flights involving HASTE, a modified version of the 59-foot-tall (18-meter-tall) Electron that allows customers to test hypersonic technologies in the space environment.
We don't know much about "Follow My Speed."
Rocket Lab described the mission in vague terms only, saying that its goal was "to deploy a single satellite for a confidential commercial customer."
Keeping things so close to the vest isn't exactly odd for launch companies, who regularly loft national-security payloads or commercial satellites with sensitive, proprietary tech. Rocket Lab, for example, launched five satellites for a confidential customer just three months ago.
latest_posts
- 1
'Malcolm in the Middle' reboot releases 1st trailer, reuniting Frankie Muniz and Bryan Cranston: Watch here - 2
Blue Origin launches huge rocket carrying twin NASA spacecraft to Mars - 3
Pfizer says patient dies after receiving hemophilia drug in trial - 4
'People We Meet on Vacation' is the 1st of many Emily Henry adaptations: What other books turned movies to look forward to - 5
Novo Nordisk justifies reasoning behind failed GLP-1 Alzheimer's trials
IDF begins destroying homes used by Hezbollah as forces move deeper into southern Lebanon
Am I a Summer, or is this a scam? What I learned from color analysis.
Best Exciting ride: Which One Rushes You the Most?
Nodding off is dangerous. Some animals have evolved extreme ways to sleep in precarious environments
21 Things You Ought to Never Tell Your Childless Companion
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS will fly by Earth Friday. Here are the latest images
Help Your Efficiency: 10 Authoritative Apparatuses to Attempt
4 Family SUVs: Joining Solace and Style
The Difficulties of Getting a Green Card in the US













