Rocket Lab reaches orbit for the first time

Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket is around one-fourth the size of a Falcon 9 and has a max payload capacity of 500 pounds. It’s definitely much smaller than its peers, but as a result, each flight only costs $5 million. Of course, it helps that the two-stage launch vehicle is powered by Rocket Lab’s Rutherford engines, which are cheap to manufacture. Those engines are primarily composed of