Kiwis launch space rocket

A ROCKET launched from New Zealand on Sunday successfully reached orbit carrying small commercial satellites.

California company Rocket Lab said its Electron rocket, which carries only a small payload, successfully deployed an earth imaging and two other satellites for weather and ship tracking after blast-off from the Mahia Peninsula on North Island’s east coast.

Company CEO Peter Beck, a New Zealander, said the launch marked the beginning of a new era in commercial access to space.