Rocket Lab may not have reached orbit in its first test flight, but New Zealand's first space company has been showered with praise for what it did achieve.
The Electron rocket, powered by its 3D-printed Rutherford engine, made it into space - the first time anywhere in the world a rocket capable of reaching orbit has been launched from a private space facility, specifically the Mahia Peninsula in Hawke's Bay.
"It has been an incredible day and I'm immensely proud of our talented team," said Peter Beck, Rocket Lab chief executive and founder.
The fact something didn't quite go to plan, preventing the rocket from entering orbit, is likely to only be a small speed bump.
"I know first-hand how incredibly hard it is to get something to space - a million things have to go right," said Dr George Sowers, former chief scientist of Boeing and Lockheed joint venture United Launch Alliance.
"As a matter of statistics, the general record of the launch industry for first flights of a new rocket is around 50 percent. Success was certainly not guaranteed."
Considering Rocket Lab's small team and their use of an all-new type of rocket and engine, that they made it into space on the first go was impressive enough, said Richard Easther, professor of physics at the University of Auckland.
"Achieving orbit on the first try would be a fairytale result with any completely new launch vehicle, and Rocket Lab came tantalizingly close to pulling this off. This will stand as a major accomplishment."
Mr Beck says Rocket Lab will now be poring over the data to find out what didn't work.
"We have learnt so much through this test launch and will learn even more in the weeks to come."
Two more test flights are scheduled this year.
Do Rocket Lab's finances stack up?
Kris Walsh, former project manager at United Launch Alliance and NASA launch director said Rocket Lab's decision to focus on smaller payloads - when compared with the likes of SpaceX - is not just good from a practical perspective, but a commercial one.
"If Rocket Lab can quickly get reliable, on time launches, they can capture a market ignored by the current industry."
Dr Sowers however says Rocket Lab will need to upscale its payloads if it hopes to remain commercially viable.
"The southern latitude limits customers to high inclination orbits, precluding a portion of the market. It is also a long journey for American or European customers, representing most of the market."
He also foresees strong competition from India and China.
"If Rocket Lab succeeds, they will be the first commercial company to do so in the small market. Many have failed, including SpaceX, who discontinued the Falcon 1 small launcher after only a handful of launches."
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