Rocket Lab USA, Inc. ( RKLB ) shares are trading marginally higher in the premarket session on Tuesday.

After the closing bell yesterday, Rocket Lab announced that it is preparing two back-to-back Electron launches to deploy NASA’s PREFIRE mission.

NASA’s PREFIRE mission is a climate change-focused mission that will systematically measure the heat, in the form of infrared and far-infrared wavelengths, lost from Earth’s polar regions for the first time.

“Helping climate scientists better understand climate change means they need precisely located measurements of Earth’s polar heat loss, which NASA’s PREFIRE mission is setting out to achieve, and helping the PREFIRE mission achieve its science objectives means its satellites need precise and accurate deployments to their locations in space,” says Rocket Lab Founder and CEO, Peter Beck.

Two dedicated missions are set to deploy one satellite each into a 525km circular orbit from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand. The first mission, titled ‘Ready, Aim, PREFIRE,’ is slated to launch after May 22, 2024. The second mission, dubbed ‘PREFIRE And Ice,’ will be scheduled within three weeks of the successful deployment of the first PREFIRE mission. 

These missions mark Rocket Lab’s 48th and 49th Electron launches and its sixth and seventh launches of 2024.

Once they reach their respective orbits, the two PREFIRE satellites will traverse the Arctic and Antarctica, intersecting as they measure thermal infrared radiation. 

“We have an excellent track record of delivering NASA’s payloads to exactly where they need to go and when they need to, and we’re looking forward to adding to that tally further with these next back-to-back launches,” Beck added.

Price Action: RKLB shares are trading higher by 2.37% to $3.89 premarket on the last check Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.