Americans 3D-printed a rocket and are preparing to launch it into orbit.
American company Relativity Space is preparing to launch the 3D-printed rocket Terran 1. This was announced by CEO Tim Ellis.
The Terran 1 rocket is composed of 85% parts made with a 3D printer. This is the first printed object of this size and scale. The length of the rocket reaches 33 meters, and its mission GLHF (Good Luck, Have Fun) is to deliver payloads for customers into orbit.
Getting ready for final ground tests, launch feeling real. At the doorstep. Photos from our technician team hard at work up high on the rocket. We are vertical again!! @relativityspace pic.twitter.com/0ANo0FywSc
— Tim Ellis (@thetimellis) February 6, 2023
If the tests are successful, Terran 1 will make its first flight already in February. It is being prepared at the spaceport located on Cape Canaveral in the state of Florida, USA.
It is interesting that developers risked printing even rocket engines on a printer. They all work on an atypical fuel for the space industry - a combination of natural gas and liquid oxygen.
If the rocket successfully reaches a low Earth orbit, Relativity Space's next flight will hopefully be to Mars. Moreover, Terran 1 engines are designed so they can be reused multiple times. Once on the Red Planet, they will easily transition to methane fuel.
The founders of Relativity Space, Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone, have formerly worked in the space companies Blue Origin and SpaceX respectively. According to their calculations, Terran 1 can deliver a payload of up to 1250 kilograms to a near-Earth orbit.
Along with this rocket, Relativity Space is also working on a much more powerful and efficient model - Terran R. It will be able to transport loads of up to approximately 20 thousand kg. It is expected that Terran R can also be used more than once. This could potentially make it a competitor for SpaceX's Falcon 9 in the long run.
Powered by Froala Editor
