The theory of relativity postpones the first launch attempt of the Terran 1 rocket
The company’s Terran 1 rocket stands on the LC-16 launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida, ahead of its first launch attempt.
Trevor Merlman / Relativity Space
3D printing specialist Relativity Space has postponed Wednesday’s first launch attempt, a mission that marks the most significant test yet of the company’s ambitious manufacturing approach.
The company’s Terran 1 rockets are launched from Launch Pad LC-16 at the US Space Force facility in Cape Canaveral, Florida. This mission called “Good Luck, Have Fun” aims to reach orbit.
The theory of relativity had a window from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm ET that started on Wednesday. After several delays and resets of the countdown, which is common when preparing to launch a rocket for the first time, the company called the attempt a “scrub,” meaning it was postponed to a later date.
Clay Walker, Relativity’s launch director, said in the company’s webcast:
In this December 7, 2022 photo released ahead of its scheduled launch on March 8, 2023 at Cape Canaveral, Fla., Relativity Space’s 3D-printed Terran 1 rocket launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. laid out on the table.
Trevor Merlman/ | | Relativity Space | Reuters
Many space companies are using 3D printing (also known as additive manufacturing), The theory of relativity has effectively gone all-in on this approachThe company believes its approach will make building an orbital-class rocket much faster than traditional methods, requiring thousands of fewer parts and allowing modifications to be made via software. Based in Long Beach, California, the venture aims to create a rocket from raw materials in just 60 days.
Terran 1 is 110 feet tall, with nine engines powering the lower first stage and one engine powering the upper second stage. The company’s ion engine is 3D printed and the rocket uses his two types of fuel: liquid oxygen and liquid natural gas. According to the company, 85% of this first Terran 1 rocket was made with 3D printing.
According to the theory of relativity, Terran 1 costs $12 million per launch. It is designed to carry approximately 1,250 kilograms to low earth orbit. This positions Terran 1 in the “mid-lift” section of the US launch market, between Rocket Lab’s Electron and SpaceX’s Falcon 9, both in price and features.
Terran 1’s debut on Wednesday carries no payload or satellites inside the rocket. The company emphasized that the launch represents a prototype.
of series of tweets Ahead of the mission, co-founder and CEO Tim Ellis shared his expectations for the mission. He said reaching the maximum aerodynamic pressure milestone about 80 seconds after takeoff would be a “key inflection point” to prove the company’s technology.
Rocket fuel tank timelapse on Relativity’s Stargate 3D printer.
Relativity Space | gif by @thesheetztweetz
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/08/relativity-3d-printed-terran-1-rocket-launch.html The theory of relativity postpones the first launch attempt of the Terran 1 rocket