'Four of a Kind' Mission

Electron

31st January 2024

'FOUR OF A KIND' ELECTRON MISSION

Mission overview

Exolaunch successfully deployed four satellites built by Spire Global and the end-user, NorthStar Earth & Space, on January 31, 2024 at 06:34 UTC via Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle. This dedicated mission, named ‘Four of a Kind’ by Rocket Lab, marked Exolaunch’s inaugural launch of 2024 and took place in Mahia, New Zealand. It is the 25th mission in Exolaunch’s flight history and elevates the total number of launched satellites to 363.

The quartet of satellites will create a space-based Space Situational Awareness (SSA) constellation, with NorthStar being the first to simultaneously monitor all near-Earth orbits from space, delivering advanced services with precise information for resident space object detection, tracking, orbit determination, collision avoidance, navigation, and proximity alerts.

Spire Global entrusted Exolaunch with the deployment of the four 16U satellites, using EXOpod Nova deployers. Exolaunch’s comprehensive management of the launch encompassed testing, shipping to the launch site in New Zealand, integration, and deployment services.

Mission

'Four of a Kind', a dedicated mission for Spire Global Inc and its customer NorthStar Earth & Space
Launch vehicle

Electron
4 satellites

Deployed via Exolaunch
Customers

Spire Global Inc and its customer NorthStar Earth & Space
Launch site

Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 - Pad B
Mahia, New Zealand
Launch period

January 2024
Applications

Monitoring of the near-Earth orbits from space, delivering a radically enhanced level of SSA services to the global satellite community, with timely and precise information for space object detection, tracking, orbit determination, collision avoidance, navigation, and proximity alerts
Main payload

Four 16U LEMUR SSA satellites