Lockheed Martin loses experimental satellite after launch goes wrong

A malfunction during a launch on Tuesday led to the loss of Lockheed Martin’s experimental satellite spacecraft.

According to a statement from Lockheed, Firefly Aerospace’s Alpha rocket launched carrying the company’s LM 400 experimental satellite early Tuesday morning. Shortly after the rocket’s first stage of separation, an anomaly occurred, causing the vehicle to lose its engine nozzle extension.

The loss significantly reduced the rocket’s thrust, and it could not reach its desired orbit. Firefly Aerospace had originally reported that the mission reached a lower-than-intended orbit but survived. However, the company confirmed later Tuesday that the vehicle had landed somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.

Neither Firefly Aerospace nor Lockheed Martin has revealed further details about the issue that caused the mission to fail. Both companies said they are working with the Federal Aviation Administration to investigate the incident.

“Navigating risk and going fast are part of these self-funded demonstrations, and the knowledge we’ve gained already from the LM 400 production and processing will also benefit future customer missions,” Lockheed Martin spokesman Chip Eschenfelder said in a statement.

The mission was intended to test and improve the abilities of Lockheed Martin’s LM 400 experimental satellite bus system. The satellite can operate at several different orbits and can support various mission types.

Lockheed Martin has been developing the LM 400 for years, hoping the satellite will be a useful and more agile alternative to traditional, larger satellites.

Firefly Aerospace’s Alpha rocket is expected to carry several more Lockheed-built satellites over the next few years. In June 2024, Lockheed contracted Firefly Aerospace to launch at least 25 satellite missions through 2029.