Rocket Lab Completes Record 21-Launch Year with Final Electron Mission

Rocket Lab Corporation concluded its 2025 operational year with the successful execution of its twenty-first and final Electron mission, designated "The Wisdom God Guides." This launch deployed the QPS-SAR-15 Earth-observing satellite for the Japanese organization, the Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space, Inc. (iQPS). The mission commenced on Sunday, December 21, 2025, lifting off from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand, at 7:36 p.m. local time, corresponding to 06:36 UTC.

The Electron rocket's specialized kick stage performed as intended, placing the QPS-SAR-15 satellite, nicknamed Sukunami-I, into a precise circular orbit approximately 575 kilometers above the Earth. The 2025 launch cadence reached a record 21 missions, surpassing the previous annual high of 16 launches set in 2024. This total comprised eighteen orbital launches utilizing the Electron vehicle and three suborbital missions conducted with the HASTE rocket, a variant featuring a modified third stage for hypersonic technology testing.

The operational success of the 2025 campaign concluded with a perfect 100% mission success rate across all 21 flights, a significant benchmark within the launch sector. This final flight marked the 79th overall Electron mission. Rocket Lab founder and CEO, Sir Peter Beck, emphasized that this record cadence demonstrates Electron's substantial global impact on the space industry. The next orbital launch is scheduled for the first quarter of 2026.

The deployed QPS-SAR-15 satellite is designed to enhance iQPS's synthetic aperture radar (SAR) constellation, which uses patented technology to capture high-resolution imagery regardless of cloud cover or time of day. iQPS intends to expand this constellation to 36 satellites to facilitate a 'Near-Real-Time Data Provisioning Service' with an average global observation interval of 10 minutes. This partnership with Rocket Lab has deepened since 2023, with this being the seventh mission for the Japanese firm, which has already secured commitments for five additional Electron launches throughout 2026.

This sustained operational consistency is complemented by Rocket Lab’s recent achievement: securing an $816 million contract in December 2025 with the U.S. Space Development Agency (SDA) to construct 18 satellites for the Tracking Layer Tranche 3 program. Sir Peter Beck indicated that 2026 plans include expanding Electron's global deployment reach for constellation customers, executing dedicated missions for international agencies in Japan and Europe, and supporting defense applications for hypersonic technology.