Neutron on the Move
New photos taken by Patrick O'Laughlin capture Rocket Lab Neutron flight hardware undergoing handling operations at the company's Middle River, Maryland facility.
New photos from Maryland show Rocket Lab's Neutron is rapidly taking shape.
Patrick O'Laughlin (@spacepat_o), the creator of RocketLaunch.Live and a photographer for NASASpaceflight, has captured some of the best views yet of Neutron hardware in the wild.
Spotted at Rocket Lab’s manufacturing facility in Middle River, Maryland, the images show massive black carbon composite sections—likely the Stage 1 tankage—being transported and manipulated by cranes. This activity suggests the team is conducting critical handling tests, moving large structures out of the factory environment and preparing them for the logistics of transport - but only Rocket Lab knows where this hardware will ultimately end up.
Either way, for a program that has kept its cards pretty close to its chest, seeing heavy hardware moving in the daylight is a major sign of progress toward the pad at Wallops.
Check out the images here:
