Space SPAC Rocket Lab Suffers Launch Failure Saturday

Space company Rocket Lab, a manufacturer and launcher of small rockets carrying even smaller satellites into orbit, announced back in March that it will go public via a merger with special purpose acquisition company Vector Acquisition Corporation (NASDAQ: VACQ) sometime in the second quarter of 2021 (i.e., before June 30). In so doing, it promised to give investors a chance to own a piece of an "end-to-end space company with an established track record, uniquely positioned to extend its lead across a launch, space systems and space applications market forecast to grow to $1.4 trillion by 2030." Launching its 20th Electron rocket out of Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand at 7:11 a.m. EDT Saturday, Rocket Lab suffered a launch failure when the rocket's second stage abruptly shut down just seconds after ignition, causing a "loss of the mission," according to a Rocket Lab statement.