Question 1

What rocket is launching Prometheus Run (VAN)?

Accepted Answer

Prometheus Run (VAN) is launching on the Electron.

Question 2

Who is launching Prometheus Run (VAN)?

Accepted Answer

Prometheus Run (VAN) is being launched by Rocket Lab, a commercial launch provider founded in 2006.

Question 3

Where is Prometheus Run (VAN) launching from?

Accepted Answer

Prometheus Run (VAN) is launching from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 (Launch Area 0 C) at Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia, USA.

Question 4

What orbit is Prometheus Run (VAN) heading to?

Accepted Answer

Prometheus Run (VAN) is heading to Suborbital (Sub).

Question 5

Is the Electron reusable?

Accepted Answer

No — the Electron is an expendable launch vehicle.

Question 6

How many times has the Electron flown?

Accepted Answer

The Electron has launched 91 times to date, with 87 successful flights.

Question 7

What is the Prometheus Run (VAN) mission?

Accepted Answer

Sub-orbital launch under Rocket Lab’s Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron (HASTE) program.

This mission was lead by MDA and deployed a government-provided primary payload developed by the John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL), and multiple secondary payloads by federal and industry partners, which tested key technologies for missile defense applications.

The mission was contracted to Rocket Lab through the DIU’s Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing Capabilities (HyCAT) program, an initiative supporting test and evaluation of new and emerging hypersonic technologies through low cost, responsive and long endurance flight testing.

Question 8

Where is NASA's Wallops Flight Facility?

Accepted Answer

Wallops Flight Facility is NASA's own launch range on Virginia's Eastern Shore, operating since 1945 and managed through Goddard Space Flight Center. It also hosts the commercial Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS).

Question 9

What launches from Wallops?

Accepted Answer

Wallops flies NASA's long-running sounding-rocket programme alongside orbital launches: Northrop Grumman's Cygnus cargo missions to the ISS on the Antares rocket from Pad 0A, Minotaur vehicles from Pad 0B, and Rocket Lab's Electron from Launch Complex 2.

Question 10

Can you watch a launch from Wallops?

Accepted Answer

The NASA Wallops Visitor Center is the designated public viewing area and posts information for each flight. Nearby Chincoteague and the Assateague seashore also give open-horizon views across the water.

Question 11

What was the first orbital launch from Wallops?

Accepted Answer

The first orbital launch from Wallops was TacSat-2, on an Orbital Sciences Minotaur in December 2006. Wallops later launched LADEE, the first deep-space mission to fly from Virginia, in 2013.

Prometheus Run (VAN)

Overview

Mission details

Launch Window

Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 (Launch Area 0 C)

Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia, USA

Frequently asked questions