
Rocket Lab, a new entrant to the space-access market, conducted the first flight test of its ground-launched Electron rocket May 25.During the test, the two-stage, 17-meter-high rocket lifted off from the company's launch site on the Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand at 4:20 p.m. local time. Minutes later, the Electron reached space. Although the rocket did not make it into orbit, the company declared the test a success overall.“It was a great flight,” said Peter Beck, Rocket Lab’s founder and…