Author Topic: European new micro launchers  (Read 53764 times)

Offline russianhalo117

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #40 on: 02/23/2018 02:59 pm »
After Brexit, I'm not sure if launchers form the UK could still be considered European.
I think the UK companies can't participate in a European Union competition.
But the Brexit is still in proces, so this is a very uncertain situation right now.
AFAIK the UK will stay a member of ESA, thus they can participate in FLPP-NEO projects, ESA funded projects.
 
As far as I understand is that they can compete as a self financing entity.

Offline bolun

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #41 on: 11/17/2018 05:38 pm »
Microlaunchers: new ways to access space

16 November 2018
Access to space was in the spotlight at this week's Φ event which followed an ESA-hosted workshop on Europe’s emerging microlaunch services held in Paris, France for industry, investors and institutions.

After a presentation at this workshop on ESA’s vision and roadmap, five companies – PLD Space, Deimos, Avio, ArianeGroup and MT Aerospace – each shared the findings of their ESA-funded feasibility studies for an economically viable and commercially self-sustaining microlauncher.

ESA organised this networking event as a way of supporting European space innovation and entrepreneurship. There were 150 participants, and more than a hundred business-to-business meetings were held, offering commercial opportunities in a growing small satellites market in search of new ways to access space.

This is part of ESA’s Space 4.0 strategy, intended to strengthen European industry by fostering a globally competitive European space sector with increased industry participation in launcher development.

Microlaunchers are designed to carry payloads of up to 350 kg – typically small commercial or experimental satellites.

- PLD Space presented a service based on its Miura (formerly Arion 2) launcher.

- Deimos and Orbex presented AZμL, a service from the Azores islands using the Orbex prime vehicle.

- Avio presented a service derived from their Vega workhorse and the upcoming Vega-C.

- MT Aerospace presented the results of a trade of analysis including different concepts and launch locations.

- ArianeGroup presented Q@TS – a "Quick @ccess To Space" ecosystem including a microlauncher concept based on Nammo’s hybrid propulsion technology.

ESA is now looking at ways of supporting underlying critical technologies, based on current study results and business opportunities.

Chosen technologies would be integrated within ESA’s existing technology portfolio, with opportunities to validate these technologies on large-scale demonstrators.

https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Transportation/Microlaunchers_new_ways_to_access_space

Note: There is not link in the article to Avio's presentation

Offline bolun

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #42 on: 11/17/2018 05:46 pm »

Offline Steven Pietrobon

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #43 on: 11/18/2018 01:02 am »
When was the former launch date?

2017.

https://web.archive.org/web/20171021155220/www.sworld.com.au/steven/space/uk-rec.txt

The Horizon SAS website is currently down. Whois information has been "redacted for privacy".

http://www.horizonsas.com/
« Last Edit: 11/18/2018 01:50 am by Steven Pietrobon »
Akin's Laws of Spacecraft Design #1:  Engineering is done with numbers.  Analysis without numbers is only an opinion.

Offline bolun

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #44 on: 12/01/2018 07:18 pm »
From https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=1071.msg1879974#msg1879974

According to Tumino's paper (page eight), Avio's micro launcher is called VEGA-E Light

Quote
More specifically, the definition of a family of configurations is currently focusing on two main configurations based on common building blocks:

- VEGA–E light, with performance of approximately 400Kg in LEO, integrating Z40 and VUS,

- VEGA–E heavy, with VEGA-C performance levels ensuring complementarity with Ariane 6 market, with reduced recurrent costs and improved versatility, integrating P120, Z40 and VUS.

Offline Rik ISS-fan

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #45 on: 06/21/2019 08:25 am »
SMILE launcher EU horizon 2020 project summary video.

Offline Rik ISS-fan

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #46 on: 01/20/2020 02:18 pm »
Ryag FlexLine of payload fairings, has an test planned for a Ø1,5m (4,9ft) fairing.
https://twitter.com/FlexLine4/status/1217773248739409920
Altair project summery video.

Hyprogeo video.
« Last Edit: 01/20/2020 02:19 pm by Rik ISS-fan »

Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #47 on: 02/07/2020 07:51 am »
Ruag (corrected) FlexLine of payload fairings, has an test planned for a Ø1,5m (4,9ft) fairing.

Now with a video:
https://twitter.com/FlexLine4/status/1224635139294212097

Offline john smith 19

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #48 on: 02/08/2020 08:27 pm »
Ryag FlexLine of payload fairings, has an test planned for a Ø1,5m (4,9ft) fairing.
https://twitter.com/FlexLine4/status/1217773248739409920
Altair project summery video.

Hyprogeo is not a launcher. It's an apogee kick stage for geo comm sats.

Applause for getting 183sec and use of HTP. Much safer to handle than the amines or a large solid. While the fuel looks a lot simpler in shape the drive mechanism looks like it could be an issue.
MCT ITS BFR SS. The worlds first Methane fueled FFSC engined CFRP SS structure A380 sized aerospaceplane tail sitter capable of Earth & Mars atmospheric flight.First flight to Mars by end of 2022 TBC. T&C apply. Trust nothing. Run your own #s "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof" R. Simberg."Competitve" means cheaper ¬cheap SCramjet proposed 1956. First +ve thrust 2004. US R&D spend to date > $10Bn. #deployed designs. Zero.

Offline Closer to Space

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #49 on: 02/11/2020 04:26 pm »
There is a new French company! They are developing the Zéphyr launcher to launch a 40kg mass in low orbit.

http://www.venture-orbital.com/index.html

Offline Rik ISS-fan

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #50 on: 02/13/2020 09:41 am »
https://twitter.com/Venture_Orbital/status/1225052236075667456
Quote
Monday, 3 aerospace students from ESTACA were invited to present their end of studies' project at Venture Orbital Systems for the @CNES  program : Perseus.

Thanks for the opportunity
Aha a spinoff from the Perseus program, building on the Engine developed under the Minerva project, that will also be used for the Astreos rocket.
I wish this startup the best of luck, but I'm skeptical.
« Last Edit: 02/13/2020 09:45 am by Rik ISS-fan »

Offline Rik ISS-fan

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #51 on: 02/13/2020 11:09 am »
I think it's also interesting to point out that the Venture Orbital System, Zephyr will be very small.
The first stage only has 44,4kN of thrust thus the total vehicle mass at launch must be <4mT.
The full rocket is only Ø1m x 11,1m (~Ø3,3' x 36.4').
If you compare this with the PLDspace Miura 1 sounding rocket that has a 32kN engine. And the full rocket is Ø0,7m x ~12,5m having a total vehicle mass of 2550kg.

Tweet RUAG FLEXLINE

Offline Rik ISS-fan

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Offline mupp

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #53 on: 07/17/2020 06:01 pm »
3 space companies (1 major, 2 startups) receive funding from the German gov aerospace agency competition to develop small satellite launch vehicles

Article is in German but here is an English (just about) TL.
https://www.dlr.de/content/de/artikel/news/2020/03/20200714_dlr-mikrolauncher-wettbewerb-drei-teams-sind-eine-Runde-weiter.html

Quote
German Aerospace Center (DLR)German center for aerospace

14 July 2020 DLR micro-launcher competition: three of These Teams next round

Jury chaired by Thomas Jarzombek (MdB), the federal government coordinator for aerospace, nominates HyImpulse Technologies GmbH, Rocket Factory Augsburg AG and Isar Aerospace Technologies GmbH. A total of 25 million euros are available for the main round of the DLR Space Administration's Microlauncher competition for the development of commercial launch services into space. Focus: Space, Commercialization, Launchers

DLR at a glance

The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft - und Raumfahrt; DLR) is the Federal Republic of Germany's Aerospace Research Center.

Three Teams will be taking part in the DLR Space Administration's Microlauncher competition one round further: "I am very pleased to announce the winners of the preliminary round in alphabetical order: HyImpulse Technologies from Baden-Württemberg, Isar Aerospace Technologies and Rocket Factory Augsburg from Bavaria," said Jury Chairman Thomas Jarzombek (MdB), federal government coordinator for aerospace, commenting on the decision of 13 July 2020. "All three applicants are currently' head-to-head ' on their way to their goal and have convinced us with their proposals in technical, economic and operational terms. They will now each receive 500,000 euros for the further development of their concepts until the main round of the competition in spring 2021."

The competition supports German Start-Ups with a total amount of 25 million euros who want to develop and offer start-up services into space commercially. The three winners rely on so-called Microlaunchers, i.e. small and modern launchers with a payload of several hundred kilograms.

The teams from HyImpulse, Isar Aerospace Technologies and the rocket Factory Augsburg can now look forward to receiving the necessary letter of Support from DLR Space Administration, with which they will be awarded contracts in the so-called C-STS programme of the European Space Agency (ESA). This funding by ESA is provided by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and energy (BMWi), which Germany signed at the last ESA Council of Ministers Conference "Space19+" in Seville in November 2019. All three SMEs were founded in 2018: HyImpulse Technologies GmbH, based in Neuenstadt am Kocher, is a DLR spin-off, relies on a 3-stage rocket with a so-called hybrid drive and currently has 40 employees; Rocket Factory Augsburg AG belongs to the OHB group, has around 60 employees and is also developing a three-stage carrier system based on liquid oxygen and kerosene; Isar Aerospace Technologies GmbH has about 70 employees, is a spin-off of the Technical University of Munich and has designed a two-stage rocket based on a light hydrocarbon drive.

"With this competition and our drawing at the ESA Council of Ministers Conference, we want to initiate commercial activities in the landscape of European launchers, which has so far been heavily dominated by large companies and state development programmes. With innovative ideas and concepts, SMEs should be given a commercial and cost-effective way into the launch services market," says Walther Pelzer, DLR executive board member for Space Administration, explaining the Motivation.

The core task of the competition was a proposal for transport services from Earth to Orbit based on a Microlauncher developed by the companies themselves. A prerequisite was also the willingness to allow non-commercial payloads from universities or research institutions selected by DLR, each with a maximum total mass of 150 kilograms, to be carried on the qualification flights free of charge. In the last two rounds of the competition the winners will receive funding for the final qualification phase of your carrier system, including the implementation of two demonstration flights in the period 2022-2023. After the now completed first round will be determined in the course of the main round (2021) the first winner of the competition will receive a grant of eleven million euros. In the third phase (2022), the second prize, which is also endowed with eleven million euros, will be awarded

Offline bolun

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #54 on: 09/12/2020 01:02 pm »
Germany is studying a mobile launchpad for satellites in the North Sea

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=51894.0

Isar Aerospace

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=47876.0

Offline bolun

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #55 on: 09/12/2020 01:19 pm »
« Last Edit: 09/12/2020 01:53 pm by bolun »

Offline TrevorMonty

Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #56 on: 09/12/2020 09:54 pm »
Nothing about price, at present Electron $7m is benchmark.

Spacerider looks cool.

Offline Rik ISS-fan

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #57 on: 09/13/2020 10:31 am »
In this post I'm trying to list the European micro launchers with realistic development paths. I'll make a distinction between companies in full EU members and from other European countries. The list.

EU
Avio, Vega Light, 3x Solid. (I think this will have the highest launch cost.)  Italy
RFA (OHB), RFA one, Germany
ISARaerospace, Spectrum, 2stage LOxLNG, Germany
*PLDspace, Miura 5, 3stage LOx/RP1, Spain.
*HyImpulse,  (LO2-Paraffin) hybrid smallsat launcher, Germany.
Venture Obital systems, Zephyr, LOx/RP1 2stages, France.

Europe:
Orbex, Prime, UK (To well known for explanation)
Nammo, NorthStar Rocket, HTP-HTPB hybrid 3 stages, Norway. :)   ..
*Skyrora Ltd., Skyrora-XL (HTP-RP1 3stages), UK/Ukraine
(Black Arrow Space Technologies, Black Arrow 2 (2stage LOX-LNG), UK.)

*companies starting with sounding rockets.
Besides these, there are several other projects in earlier stages of development, with less funding or operating more silently. (Or I deem them unrealistic, for example Zero2Infinity, Bloostar)

The one still required mentioning, is the VLM-1/VS-50 from CTA(Brazil) and DLR (Germany). The German DLR (German aerospace research institute)/MoRaBA contributed a lot to the development. DLR MoRaBa still requires VS-50, but I think DLR stopped contributing the the S50/VS-50/VLM development).
DLR MORABA still list the VS-50 and VLM in their sounding rocket list.

https://www.moraba.de/index.php/sounding-rockets.html
But I think this list will need to be edited a lot, because the suborbital launcher offering will change even more than the micro-launcher offering. For example; DLR contracted the development of a new solid rocket motor with 800kg of propellant. This motor will be called Red Kite, and will most likely replace the S30 and S31 solid rocket motors. Besides I also expect the return of meteorological rockets (much smaller suborbital rockets).
« Last Edit: 11/23/2020 06:52 pm by Rik ISS-fan »

Offline R.H.

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Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #58 on: 11/06/2020 09:10 am »
Aha a spinoff from the Perseus program, building on the Engine developed under the Minerva project, that will also be used for the Astreos rocket.
I wish this startup the best of luck, but I'm skeptical.

Hi !
Sorry I'm quite late to reply here... I just stumbled across this forum where you speak about Venture Orbital Systems.
I work in this company (I'm the guy holding the microphone on the Twitter post actually) and I just wanted to clarify that, no, we are not a spinoff of the CNES Perseus program. We were only invited by CNES to present our work at the seminary, but the company (VOS) has nothing to do with Perseus or the Minerva engine.
Although the CNES has been helping us in different ways, we have our own launcher "Zephyr" and our own engine "Navier" currently in development.

I think it's also interesting to point out that the Venture Orbital System, Zephyr will be very small.
The first stage only has 44,4kN of thrust thus the total vehicle mass at launch must be <4mT.
The full rocket is only Ø1m x 11,1m (~Ø3,3' x 36.4').
If you compare this with the PLDspace Miura 1 sounding rocket that has a 32kN engine. And the full rocket is Ø0,7m x ~12,5m having a total vehicle mass of 2550kg.

Also btw, although our website is not up to date on the latest news regarding our launcher Zephyr (we are working on that), we have upgraded its orbital capacity. Therefore, it is actually a little bigger and more powerful than that !
But it still remains among the smallest launchers in development today since we are aiming at the cubesats and nanosats markets only.

More information can be found on our website Venture Orbital Systems if you are interested in our project, and don't hesitate to follow us on social media and ask questions. It is always a pleasure to talk with other space enthusiasts !

I wish you all a great day!

Offline TrevorMonty

Re: European new micro launchers
« Reply #59 on: 11/06/2020 05:45 pm »
Aha a spinoff from the Perseus program, building on the Engine developed under the Minerva project, that will also be used for the Astreos rocket.
I wish this startup the best of luck, but I'm skeptical.

Hi !
Sorry I'm quite late to reply here... I just stumbled across this forum where you speak about Venture Orbital Systems.
I work in this company (I'm the guy holding the microphone on the Twitter post actually) and I just wanted to clarify that, no, we are not a spinoff of the CNES Perseus program. We were only invited by CNES to present our work at the seminary, but the company (VOS) has nothing to do with Perseus or the Minerva engine.
Although the CNES has been helping us in different ways, we have our own launcher "Zephyr" and our own engine "Navier" currently in development.

I think it's also interesting to point out that the Venture Orbital System, Zephyr will be very small.
The first stage only has 44,4kN of thrust thus the total vehicle mass at launch must be <4mT.
The full rocket is only Ø1m x 11,1m (~Ø3,3' x 36.4').
If you compare this with the PLDspace Miura 1 sounding rocket that has a 32kN engine. And the full rocket is Ø0,7m x ~12,5m having a total vehicle mass of 2550kg.

Also btw, although our website is not up to date on the latest news regarding our launcher Zephyr (we are working on that), we have upgraded its orbital capacity. Therefore, it is actually a little bigger and more powerful than that !
But it still remains among the smallest launchers in development today since we are aiming at the cubesats and nanosats markets only.

More information can be found on our website Venture Orbital Systems if you are interested in our project, and don't hesitate to follow us on social media and ask questions. It is always a pleasure to talk with other space enthusiasts !

I wish you all a great day!
What is thrust of your Navier engine? Is pressure fed or turbopump. I'm guessing electric if turbo given its smaller than Rutherford.

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