“We are developing rockets that are reusable and can be used to reach small satellites faster and safer” – This is how he announces himself Spanish PLD Survey. His current project is a milestone in European astronautics.
The missile, called Miura-1, was launched at night from southern Huelva. mentioned Reuters. Miura is the Spanish name for a fighting bull known from battles.
The height of the first version of the missile corresponds to a three-story building, and its payload is one hundred kilograms. After the first successful launch, it only carried a data collection payload and was not originally planned to leave suborbital orbit.
During the short test flight, mission control engineers cheered and congratulated each other during the flight Miura–1 She disappeared into the dark night sky.
“My voice is gone,” PLD Space’s CEO shouted triumphantly shortly after the launch. According to Raul Torres, all of the missile’s systems worked “perfectly” as planned. The company will now focus on tripling its workforce.
This is just the beginning
Torres promised.
“The launch of Miura-1, the first rocket made with 100% Spanish technology, was a success. It is an achievement that puts Spain at the forefront of space transportation in terms of research and development.” – splurge Acting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on social media
European attempts
The flight itself took barely more than five minutes. Miura-1 spent exactly 306 seconds in the air. The flight’s altitude was 46 kilometers, barely half of what mission planners had hoped. written by Space portal.
The partially reusable launch vehicle landed in the Atlantic Ocean and was later collected by the Spanish company.
The Miura-1’s first test flight in May was canceled due to high winds. The June attempt failed because the so-called umbilical cord was not disconnected. The takeoff was canceled due to smoke and flames rising from the missile.
At the beginning of this year, for the first time since the beginning of the space age, satellites were tested to orbit around the Earth from the territory of Great Britain. However, the maneuver failed due to an unspecified malfunction. In the Virgin Orbit system, the launch vehicle was launched from a converted Boeing 747.
The launch of Miura-1 over the weekend was the first of two planned suborbital missions. According to experts, the most important test is the Miura test scheduled for 2025, which is larger than the current test.–5- Developing its full orbital services.
European space exploration is in forced rest
European rivals to Spain’s PLD Space are German, French and British companies based in Scandinavia and Scotland, including Rocket Factory Augsburg and Isar Aerospace.
The Ariane-5 mission ended in July at the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The European launch vehicle has delivered hundreds of cargoes into space in 27 years.
Until recently, Europe was the 11-ton Ariane–The space cargo was delivered with 5. In the case of the medium-weight payload, he chartered the Russian Soyuz launch vehicle, and in the case of the smaller cargo, he chartered the Italian Vega launch vehicle, which also launched from Kourou.
With the closure of Ariane-5, Europe will practically not be able to access outer space independently until its successor, Ariane-6, is ready.
In response to European sanctions imposed over the invasion of Ukraine, Russia is not allowing deliveries of Soyuz rockets, while its updated version of the Vega-C has been suspended for technical reasons, as has the Ariane rocket.–6 can only be sailed next year at the earliest.
The European Space Agency announced that Vega-C will only be able to return to service in the last quarter of 2024, after one of its missions ended unsuccessfully last December.
(Cover image: BLD Space/Reuters)
