Relativity Space
This post isn't related to human spaceflight, but congratulations to Relativity Space for the successful launch of its Terran 1 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida over one hour ago!
Even though Terran 1 failed to reach Earth orbit due to an anomaly with its second stage motor, this launch vehicle still made history as it was the first 3D-printed and methane-fueled rocket to successfully head towards space. (In regards to other American-made launch vehicles, SpaceX's Starship prototypes were also methane-fueled but only reached suborbital altitudes during their test flights.)
Around 85% of Terran 1's components are 3D-printed, and it's a huge victory on Relativity's part that its rocket made it through Max Q—or the area of maximum dynamic pressure—unscathed. We'll see when Relativity sets a launch date for the second Terran 1 booster as engineers pour over data from today's maiden mission.
I'm rooting for Relativity to become the latest private company, after Rocket Lab, Virgin Orbit, Astra and Firefly, whose rocket achieves orbital flight! Happy Wednesday.
Here's a replay of Relativity Space's first Terran 1 rocket from Cape Canaveral at 11:25pm EDT (0325 UTC).
— Spaceflight Now (@SpaceflightNow) March 23, 2023
The methane-fueled, 3D-printed rocket climbed into space powered by nine main engines, but an upper stage failure prevented it from reaching orbit.https://t.co/5SAWJ1O3G3 pic.twitter.com/YoK79nmM5C
Agreed. https://t.co/oQmQvH6zPy pic.twitter.com/sxK4UByjlm
— Relativity Space (@relativityspace) March 23, 2023
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