Rocket Lab inaugurates LC-3 at Wallops for its Neutron rocket.

“The Neutron is Rocket Lab’s first reusable medium-lift vehicle, standing 141 feet (43 meters) tall—taller than its initial design of 130 feet—and capable of delivering up to 28,660 pounds (13,000 kilograms) to low Earth orbit (LEO).

It features a unique “Hungry Hippo” fairing on the first stage that opens to deploy the second stage, which is housed inside for streamlined aerodynamics. The first stage is powered by nine Archimedes engines (up from an original seven), while the second stage uses one vacuum-optimized Archimedes engine.

Both stages use liquid oxygen (LOX) and liquid methane as propellants, enabling reusability—the first stage can land on land or a sea barge named “Return On Investment.”

Some of you are thinking 13,000kgs isn’t much but its worth noting the average non starlink payload for the flacon 9 is only about 5,000kgs.