BPM-17 isn’t built to fly. It’s built to to shake down our new test stand, and to protect the much more complex BPM-25 engine waiting in the wings.Before we light up the engine that could take us to space, we’re firing this rugged test mule to make sure everything else is ready.
The pre-burner is almost in place. The control system is online. Now we’re wiring up the brains to the flame.Configuring the small test stand to command and control the pre-burner and log every pulse of data. Spica needs pressure. This is how we’ll make it.
🔥 Injector test for our preburner engine!This is a key step toward powering the pressurization on our BPM-25 propelled rocket. Spray pattern looks great – smooth and stable.DIY rocketry at its finest 🚀
Scott and Sami are planning the cabling for our big engine test stand — every wire matters when you're chasing rocket reliability. Groundwork like this gets us closer to sending a human to space.
This stand is being prepped for our BPM-25 engine — a powerful step toward the capsule that will one day carry a human into space. 🚀
The nerve center of our new engine test stand is coming together.Each of these cables will carry sensor data—temps, pressures, valve positions—or send commands to critical components like valves and igniters. Together, they’ll let us control and monitor the engine when it runs
First test fit of our new thrust structure! Built to handle the BPM-17’s raw power on the test stand—and everything fit perfectly.Just missing a few bolts before we mount the engine itself next weekend. Then? Fire and thunder.Getting closer to launching a human to space. 🚀
First contact: laser meets Kevlar.We're cutting the upper halves of the 12 gores for our ballute — an inflatable decelerator designed to slow our capsule after reentry.Scott oversees the first glowing traces from the laser cutter. One step closer to sending a human to space.
Started streaming 93 minutes agoCopenhagen Suborbitals is the world's only crewed, crowdfunded space program. In the future, a volunteer astronaut will fly to space on our home-built rocket. We do this on our spare time, all the donations go to paying our workshop rent and buying materials. We are forever thankful to each of our supporters!Twitter : https://twitter.com/CopSubFacebook : https://www.facebook.com/CopenhagenSu...Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/copsub/LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/cope...Pinterest : https://www.pinterest.com/copsub/Music by Everyday Astronaut:(https://www.everydayastronaut.com)TIMESTAMPS00:00:00 - Setup01:02:27 - 1st Ignition01:21:10 - 2nd Ignition (much better)01:49:00 - Flight Director comments on the tests02:41:55 - What sensors are we using?03:13:05 - Final scrub and closing comments
Copenhagen Suborbitals@CopSub·Our vision: The piloted Spica rocket lifts off from the mobile launch platform.Learn more about our crowdfunded space program at http://copsub.comIf you wish to help us, become a supporter & fly your name to space! 🚀
The Capsule Comes Alive AgainFor years we built Spica’s engines. The capsule waited, with Randy the crash test dummy keeping watch. Now the engine is almost ready, and we return to the capsule — bringing dreams back to life.Engines lift us, the capsule carries the dream.
Progress starts with small tweaks — and sometimes a racing seat. Tested a race-car seat in a modular fixation for the capsule: comfy, practical, and much easier to work with. Likely what we’ll use when we drop the capsule with Randy in the harbour — splashdown, meet speedway. 🚀
Nov 22, 2025In this video, we walk through the evolution of the Copenhagen Suborbitals astronaut seat — from our original home-built design to the new race car seat that may fly in the capsule.We talk about the ideas behind the previous seat, including our attempt to emulate and improve on the iconic Apollo designs, and what we learned from that.The result? A safer, stronger, better-proven solution that gives our astronaut candidate the best possible chance when riding a homemade rocket into the sky.Every choice we make — every bracket, bolt, and seat — brings us one step closer to our ultimate goal: sending a human to space on a DIY rocket.
Dec 28, 2025The injector for BPM-17 is now complete.BPM-17 is a test engine built to prepare our test stand for the next generation of Spica’s large rocket engines. While the injector itself is a highly technical component, this video is really about the people behind it — the care, persistence, and collaboration required to make something work under extreme conditions.Built by volunteers, step by step, in pursuit of a single long-term goal:to send a human to space.
