Rocket Lab May launch booster recovery, aiming for SpaceX reusability

The next mission for small launch leader Rocket Lab will feature its second attempt to recover an Electron rocket booster after liftoff by splashing it down in the ocean.

The company is working toward reusability of its rockets—the same way Elon Musk’s SpaceX currently does.

“Where we’re trying to get, is to the point where we can literally catch this thing and then repeat,” Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck told CNBC. “Launch, catch, repeat.”

The next mission, its 20th to date, is scheduled to launch in May from the company’s private facility in New Zealand. The primary…