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Rocket Lab Successfully Launches 85th Mission and First Dedicated Launch for European Space Agency
The Celeste mission will test new satellite navigation technologies to complement Galileo, enhancing Europe’s navigation services and resilience, ESA said.
- On Saturday, Rocket Lab launched the European Space Agency's first two Celeste satellites from New Zealand, successfully deploying the spacecraft into low Earth orbit at 510 km.
- Designed to complement Europe's Galileo constellation, Celeste demonstrates how a low Earth orbit fleet can work with medium Earth orbit systems to provide more resilient navigation and timing services.
- Built by two consortia led by GMV and Thales Alenia Space , the satellites will test signals across various frequency bands to support autonomous vehicles, maritime navigation, and critical infrastructure.
- Francisco-Javier Benedicto Ruiz, ESA's Director of Navigation, said the mission will "demonstrate how a complementary layer can enhance Europe's navigation." Mission control now prepares the spacecraft for their operational life in orbit.
- Additional launches in 2027 will bring the mission to its full configuration of 11 spacecraft, offering experimentation opportunities across different frequency bands and user environments for European applications.
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Rocket Lab Successfully Launches 85th Mission and First Dedicated Launch for European Space Agency - Rocket Lab (NASDAQ:RKLB)
MAHIA, New Zealand, March 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ:RKLB) ("Rocket Lab" or the "Company"), a global leader in launch services and space systems, today successfully completed its first
The first two satellites of the new European Space Agency’s (ESA) Celeste programme took off this Saturday from New Zealand on a demonstration mission, with the aim of strengthening the capabilities of the Galileo satellite navigation system. The entry Launches the first ESA Celeste satellites to strengthen Galileo’s capabilities was first published in Digital Process.
Funded by the European Space Agency (ESA), the Celeste constellation took off. Two satellites from the Celeste mission of demonstration in orbit took off on board the American launcher Electron de Rocket Lab.
The Celeste IOD-1 satellite, developed by GMV and the Nigrán-based company Alén Space as part of the European Space Agency's (ESA) Celeste In-Orbit Demonstrator (IOD) program, was successfully launched on March 28 at Rocket Lab's Launch Complex 1 in Māhia, New Zealand.
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