Competitor SpaceX: the launch date of the new reusable American rocket Neutron is known (photo)

Subscribe so you don't miss the latest and most exciting news from the world of science! Rocket Lab was originally going to send a reusable Neutron rocket into space for the first time in 2024, then in late 2025, but the launch has now been pushed back to next year. During the first three months of 2026, the Neutron rocket will be delivered to the launch pad at Wallops Island, Virginia. The actual launch will take place later, after the final tests have been completed.

The postponement of the launch date of the Neutron launch vehicle has been a setback for Rocket Lab's desire to compete more strongly with Elon Musk's SpaceX. Rocket Lab is SpaceX's main competitor in the market for launching satellites into space. For this, the company uses the Electron rocket. This year, the rocket has already made 16 launches into space, but the 17th launch should take place at the end of November.

The 43-meter Neutron rocket is equipped with Archimedes engines developed by Rocket Lab. The rocket is partially reusable, because only the first stage of the rocket can be used again after launch. It has to land on a floating landing platform in the ocean. But on Neutron's maiden flight, the first stage is supposed to land in the ocean rather than make an actual landing. The new reusable rocket is designed to deliver 13,000 kilograms of payload, including satellites, to low Earth orbit.

Thus, the Neutron rocket will become a direct competitor of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck said the company will not take undue risks when launching the Neutron rocket. The delay in the rocket's launch date is because, Beck said, additional time is needed to eliminate all risks that would allow for a successful maiden flight into space. According to Beck, the company's main goal is to get the Neutron rocket into orbit on its maiden launch, not to send it into space sooner.

"For us, success is getting into orbit. A new rocket rarely gets to orbit the first time, but that's definitely our goal," Beck said. As Focus has already written, the SpaceX company is developing a landing module for NASA astronauts, who are supposed to land on the moon in 2028. This module is the upper stage version of the most powerful missile in the world today, the Starship.