Rocket Lab produces its 1,000th Rutherford engine
Rocket Lab USA, Inc, Long Beach, California, USA, has announced that its 1,000th Rutherford engine has come off the production line. The company states that the Rutherford engine is the world’s first additively manufactured, battery-powered rocket engine and claims that it is now one of the most-manufactured rocket engines in the world.
The development of the Rutherford engine began in 2013 and made its successful orbital debut in January 2018 aboard the Electron small launch vehicle. Nine sea-level Rutherford engines power Electron’s first stage, collectively achieving peak thrust of 224 kN (50,600 lbf), while a single vacuum-optimised 25.8 kN (5,800 lbf) thrust variant drives the second stage.
The engine weighs 35 kg and uses brushless DC electric motors powered by lithium-polymer batteries to drive its propellant pumps, replacing the gas turbine systems used in conventional rocket engines with a lighter electric drive train.
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The production rate has reportedly grown from approximately one engine per month in 2017 to a current target of around 200 units annually. By late 2025, Rutherford engines had powered over 70 successful Electron launches, with over 800 engines flown to space.
