Following the successful delivery of CAPSTONE into space with Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket and Photon Lunar spacecraft, NASA’s CubeSat remains attached to Photon as it periodically turns on its HyperCurie engine to accelerate its mission beyond Earthurbit. 
Today, Photon successfully completed its fourth orbital maneuver to bring CAPSTONE closer to the Moon – the second of two completed maneuvers in the same 24-hour period.  After the next few days and successive burns of the HyperCurie engine, Photon will release CAPSTONE into a lunar orbital orbital orbit, from which Advanced Space (which owns and operates CAPSTONE on behalf of NASA) will take over CAPSTONE mission.

ABOUT CAPSTONE: The Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE) CubeSat was successfully launched into space with the Rocket Lab & CloseCurlyQuote Electron launch vehicle at 09:55 UTC, 28 June. Designed and built by Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, a Terran Orbital Corporation, and owned and operated by Advanced Space on behalf of NASA, the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE) CubeSat will be the first spacecraft to test the Near Linear halo orbit (NRHO) around the Moon. This is the same orbit for NASA & Gateway Gateway & CloseCurlyQuote, a multi-purpose station in lunar orbit that will provide substantial support for long-term astronaut lunar missions as part of the Artemis program. + Images & Video Content
+ About Rocket Lab Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company with a well-established mission success history. We provide reliable launch services, satellite construction, spacecraft components and orbital management solutions that make space access faster, easier and more accessible. Based in Long Beach, California, Rocket Lab designs and builds the Electron small orbital launch vehicle and the Photon satellite platform and develops the 8-tonne Neutron payload launch vehicle. Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, Rocket Lab & CloseCurlyQuote’s Electron launch vehicle has become the second most frequently launched rocket in the United States annually, delivering 147 orbiting satellites to private and public security organizations, nationwide scientific research and space. debris mitigation, earth observation, climate monitoring and communications. Rocket Lab & CloseCurlyQuote’s Photon spacecraft platform has been selected to support NASA missions to the Moon and Mars, as well as the first private commercial mission to Venus. Rocket Lab has three launch sites at two launch sites, including two launch sites at a private launch orbit in New Zealand and a second launch site in Virginia, USA, which is expected to be operational in 2022. To find out more, visit www. rocketlabusa.com. See the original version at businesswire.com: