Rocket Lab Is Furious About NASA's Mars Mission Decision
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Rocket Lab Is Furious About NASA's Mars Mission Decision
Rocket Lab is not happy with NASA, and it is not being quiet about it. The New Zealand-founded, US-listed launch company has gone public with its frustration over a NASA decision regarding a Mars spacecraft contract, and the dispute is shining a light on the increasingly competitive and complicated relationship between the space agency and its commercial partners.
Key Takeaways
- Rocket Lab has publicly criticised NASA over a Mars spacecraft mission decision, an unusual move for a company dependent on government contracts
- Rocket Lab was previously selected to build and operate the ESCAPADE spacecraft, a NASA Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration mission studying Mars' magnetosphere
- The dispute arrives as Rocket Lab is spending heavily on its Neutron medium-lift rocket and pursuing larger NASA contracts
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