BRUNSWICK, Maine (AP) – A Maine company that is developing a rocket to launch small satellites into space passed its first major test on Sunday.
The BluShift Aerospace, from Brunswick, launched a 6-meter rocket prototype, reaching an altitude of just over 4,000 feet (1,219 meters) in a first run designed to test the rocket’s propulsion and control systems.
He conducted a student science project at Falmouth High School that will measure flight metrics, such as barometric pressure, a special alloy being tested by a New Hampshire company – and a Dutch dessert called stroopwafel, in honor of its parent company based in Amsterdam. Launch organizers said the items were included to demonstrate the inclusion of a small payload.
The company, which was launched in the city of Limestone, in northern Maine, home to the former Loring Air Force Base, is one of dozens running to find affordable ways to launch so-called nano satellites. Some of them, called Cube-Sats, can be up to 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters.
Sascha Deri, executive director of bluShift, said the company is betting on becoming a faster and more efficient way to transport satellites into space.
“There are many companies out there that are like freight trains into space,” said Deri. “We are going to be Uber to space, where we transport one, two or three payloads at a profit.”
Another aspect that makes the bluShift rocket different is its hybrid propulsion system.
It depends on a solid fuel and a liquid oxidizer that passes through or around the solid fuel; the result is a system that is simpler and more affordable than a liquid fuel rocket, said spokesman Seth Lockman. The fuel is a proprietary blend of biofuels from farms, said Deri.
“It is a very non-toxic fuel, I like to say that I can give it to any of my daughters. Nothing bad would happen to them, I swear, ”he said. “So it is very non-toxic. It is carbon neutral. “
The goal is to create a small rocket that could launch a payload of 30 kilograms (66 pounds) into low Earth orbit, more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) above the Earth’s surface. Lockman said orbit may be possible in 2024.
The company spent $ 800,000 on research and development, with part of the money coming from NASA.
BluShift officials said they did not anticipate the launch of Brunswick, where they are based, because of the population density in the area.
An attempt to launch a test in Limestone in early January has been delayed because of the weather. Sunday’s launch was also delayed by some false departures, but event organizers described the eventual take-off at 3 pm as “perfect”.
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Associated Press journalist Cody Jackson contributed to this Miami report.