What Happened
US Space Force Satellite Launched in Tactically Responsive Space Program
Rocket Lab has successfully launched the US Space Force’s Victus Haze mission just 16 hours and 42 minutes after receiving its notice to launch, setting a new record for the service’s Tactically Responsive Space (TacRS) program. The Electron rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand, placing a Rocket Lab-built Pioneer-class spacecraft into low Earth orbit. The mission demonstrates the US Space Force’s effort to deploy or reposition spacecraft in hours rather than months, in response to an increasingly contested orbital environment. This achievement was first reported by AeroTime.