Orbspace Infinity suborbital VTVL

[Zond]

The Austrian company Orbspace plans to develop a VTVL rocket for the suborbital space tourism market. Their vehicle is called Infinity. It will have a length of 9m and a diameter of 2.5m and should weigh about 13 tons. The manned variant will have a capsule which will be able to carry three passengers. This is the first european suborbital venture that i know of that plans to use a VTVL.

[jongoff]

Zond,

The Austrian company Orbspace plans to develop a VTVL rocket for the suborbital space tourism market. Their vehicle is called Infinity. It will have a length of 9m and a diameter of 2.5m and should weigh about 13 tons. The manned variant will have a capsule which will be able to carry three passengers. This is the first european suborbital venture that i know of that plans to use a VTVL.

It's good to start seeing more realistic approaches being proposed by our friends "across the pond".  Between them and Project Enterprise (a german group that several of my friends work with who are taking more of a European XCOR approach), and of course Virgin's work with Scale Composites, I think we're starting to see some real international competition in the reusable suborbital market.  I think this is potentially really good for the industry as a whole, even if it means more competition.  To Orbspace, I say "welcome to the VTVL brotherhood!"  

Personally, I think that foreign projects like this are far more exciting and meaningful than any sort of "space race" between aging socialist design bureaus.  Those were so last-century.

~Jon

[bad_astra]

Stabilo takes off vertically, just very slowly.