We signed a first Boost! contract with @PLD_Space earlier this year for @ESA to co-fund the development of a modular payload accommodation system known as MOSPA (Modular Solution for Payload Adapter) for MIURA 5, designed to release all types of satellites with as much flexibility as possible. This is a great example of ESA’s work towards a diverse and growing European launcher ecosystem. Great tour today in Elche 🇪🇸, thank you! More on the Boost! programme👇
Yesterday was a significant day for our company, founders and team! ✨ We were honored to welcome the first visit of @AschbacherJosef , General Director at @esa, together with Toni Tolker-Nielsen, ESA Director of Space Transportation, at our engineering and production facilities to share and update on the latest significant advancements on the development of MIURA 5 and our 10-years future spacetech roadmap. The visit was also warmly supported by @DianaMorantR , Spanish Minister of Science and Innovation, and Juan Carlos Cortés Pulido, Director of the Spanish Space Agency (@aee_gob).Thank you, Josef Aschbacher, for your motivating and exhilarating words to the whole team! We will deliver! 🚀
✨ After months of intense work, today we are glad to reveal a new brand that is set to evolve its identity as part of our ambitious growth plans.The overhaul includes an update to our corporate logo and a consistent design system, including a more dynamic colour palette and a specially designed font.“Our purpose is to project the PLD Space brand globally with the solidity, reliability and dynamism that has always characterized us, while reinforcing our brand values and team spirit, key to PLD Space’s success to date and our future growth and employer brand plan,” said co-founder and CEO, Raúl Torres (@RaulTorresPLD).Very excited to take the next activation steps!Read full related news article below ⬇️bit.ly/3WMLRtN#brandidentity #brandgrowth
The time has come!We are excited to tease our most eagerly 2024 annual meeting event:“Beyond_ by PLD Space, Unveiling the future of Space Transportation”Beyond_ is honored to take place on PLD Space’s anniversary of the first successful MIURA 1 launch and during the World Space Week.🕘 Follow / Don’t miss the presentation of #BeyondbyPLD on October 7th, starting at 12:30pm CEST.➡️ The entire event will be covered through a livestream on our YouTube Live account, so save the date and tune in here: https://www.youtube.com/@PLDSPACE/streamsTake a first look at our teaser!👇#beyondbyPLD
Quite the packed crowd at @PLD_Space Stay tuned for what they have to show 👀
Ezequiel Sanchez, Executive President, says the company has three different phases: the now (2025, Miura 1 and Miura 5 dev), the new (2028 Miura 5 regular flights), and the next (>2030).
So far have raised up to 155M€ since the founding in 2011, now over 250 employees working at the company from 17 different countries. Growing at a rate of 15 employees per month
Nearly 600M€ in commercial interest, won't sign actual contracts until closer to launch but puts in context the launch demand.
"On time, on cost, on quality" culture at PLD Space. The slide Ezequiel is showing also shows "Speed & scale", "great culture and team spirit". He says the company is built bottom up to achieve the best engineering and management
Miura 1 SN1 launched a year ago today, achieving the objectives set forth by the company for the suborbital technology demonstrator. A second rocket, SN2, was built as a backup and now hangs from the ceiling at the lobby
The NOW: Miura 5Miura 5 is a ~1 tonne to LEO rocket powered by 5 TEPREL-C engines on the first stage and a TEPREL-C Vacuum engine on the second stage. 35.7m tall, 2m diameter. No surprises here, already announced a while back and no big changes there.
Uses biokerosene and liquid oxygen as propellants, made of aluminum for the tanks and carbon composites for interstage and fairing.
A barrel section of Miura 5 and a test fairing
TEPREL-B used on Miura 1 vs the combustion chamber and nozzle for TEPREL-C which will be used on Miura 5. While TEPREL-B was a pressure-fed engine, the TEPREL-C is an open cycle, gas generator kerolox engine with a thrust of 190kN. Five of them will power Miura 5.
Raul Torres, CEO, says Miura 5 has a "robust design". Arguing that customers just want their payloads into orbit, they don't care if the rocket uses carbon fiber, aluminum, or any other design choice as long as it does what it needs to do.
The second stage will be deorbited after each mission to reduce orbital debris.The first stage will be reusable, being brought down under parachutes for recovery from the ocean.
Iterative design during development and then automation during operations. Iterate and innovate. Torres puts the example of a LOX valve that they thought would take only 2-3 iteration cycles, they turned out to be 8. Very humbling experience
He claims the factory we're in today will be capable of a production cadence of 60 engines per year by the end of 2025. The factory needs to be able to produce six rockets per year.
"Test like you fly & test what you fly". The company has extended its footprint at its testing site in Teruel. Claims that the point of testing is to break things. Not ideal, but it's good because it means you find failing points. Relatively nearby, helps with quick development
🎇 A new range of launchers is coming!MIURA Next, Next Heavy and Next Super Heavy will have the capability to place more than 53 tons in orbit... and not only that, it will be able to land!➡️ Follow the live broadcast via YouTube: bit.ly/3ZQQQeJ#beyondbyPLD
Miura 5 will launch from the Guiana Space Center, launch pad works are about to begin. Aim is to get launchpad and rocket ready for launch by late 2025, probably early 2026.
Co-founder Raul Verdu now on stage. Says Miura 5 will have two test flights, would like to have a perfect flight on the first one but understand there's risk involved.
Miura 5's performance at the beginning won't remain the same many flights down the line. Aim is to improve the rocket performance wherever they can.
Partnerships with Arianespace, EXOLaunch, European Commission, ESA, and the Spanish government. First flight will carry payloads from the SPARK program which will fly payloads from universities and academia.
The company has received 98 applications from 24 different countries ranging from school children to universities or even commercial clients with low risk payloads.
The NEW: Miura 5 Block 1.1More performance, first stage propulsive landing back on land. The technologies from this block upgrade will help on the follow-on rocket after Miura 5.
The first Miura 5 Block 1.0 rockets will be expended, moving on to reusable Miura 5 Block 1.1 flights a couple of years after the first flight (so around 2028). PLD hopes to reduce cost by 60% by doing this.
The NEXT: Miura NEXTLarger rocket, more powerful, with first stage reuse and flexible. Miura NEXT, Miura NEXT Heavy, and Miura NEXT Super Heavy.
Raul Torres claims the Miura NEXT family will be able to cover 100% of the market demand in the next decade and beyond.
Miura NEXT will be 60 meters tall, 3.5m in diameter. Two stages, five engines on the first stage.The new engine will be an oxygen-rich staged combustion cycle kerolox engine. Miura NEXT will be able to carry 13.5 tonnes to an ISS-equivalent orbit, 11t to SSO, 4.6t to GTO.
Aiming to build and debut Miura NEXT in 2030. Reusability reduces performance down to 10t, 8.3t, and 2.9t with downrange landing. Goes down further if RTLS
Miura NEXT Heavy and Miura NEXT Super Heavy will be the European Angara, combining 3 or 5 boosters. The Heavy version will be able to launch 30-36 tonnes to LEO and 15 tonnes to GTO, more than any Ariane rocket.
Aim is to fly Miura NEXT Heavy two years after the debut of the single stick version.Miura NEXT Super Heavy will be capable of launching 53 tonnes to LEO, 23 tonnes to GTO, 16.7 tonnes to the Moon, and 13.7 tonnes to Mars.
"We'll be able to actually enter the space race with these rockets". Miura NEXT Super Heavy would debut a few years after Miura NEXT Heavy.
🥇 And to end on a high note...We present LINCE, Europe's first private manned mission program.We seek to equip Europe with the capability to transport astronauts into space and bring them back to Earth.#beyondbyPLD
"There's one more thing" PLD Space announces LINCE (Lynx) project, the company's crewed capsule for human spaceflight and cargo transportation to LEO and beyond.
The capsule will be able to fit 4-5 people onboard, launched on a Miura NEXT. Cargo version will be capable of carrying 5 tonnes up and 3.4 tonnes down. Aim is to also use it for lunar flights.
The capsule will be landing in the Atlantic Ocean or Mediterranean Sea. The company has already built a structural model for fit checks
Starting drop tests next year. Thinking it'll be a 10-year program until people fly on it. PLD Space will use a Miura 5 to perform an in-flight abort test of the capsule. The escape system will be a traditional launch escape tower. This test is aimed for 2028.
They are apparently targeting a first launch in 2030.
Well, that’s ambitious, to put it kindly.
This is how big Miura 5 will be once assembled
.@PLD_Space presents its plans for the future: Miura Next, Miura Next Heavy, and Miura Next Super Heavy.
Thanks for the coverage. What did they say about funding? This is a 15-year plan that will cost on the order of $5 billion to $10 billion minimum. I applaud the audacity but would like to get a sense of its realism.
Officials at the company told us they think it'll take at least 700M€ in funding to get to a maiden flight. I've told them back that they'd have to multiply that by 4 or 5 to make it realistic. We'll see what happens 😅
Maiden flight of what?
Of Miura NEXT with the capsule. They told us the first flight of both will be on the same flight. I assume it'll be a very stripped down version of the capsule, a la Falcon 9 Flight 1
I think this is the moment to pull o the break for different medium to heavy launcher concepts in Europe. I'm very doubtfull there is sufficient demand for two different launchers. Three proposals besides Ariane 6 and Vega C/E have been released.Arianegroup (Maia space) [France] Nests family of Ariane next launchers. Avio Space [Italy] STS in flight demo and Vega Next gen. And now the PLD space [Spain] Miura Next. I feer a lot of funding to be waisted on launchers, and as a result there isn's funding for the satellites.