Spain: Spanish company PLD Space has successfully launched its reusable MIURA-1 rocket from Huelva, a site in southwest Spain. The move marks Europe’s first fully private rocket launch, offering hope for its stalled space ambitions.
The startup’s test nighttime launch came after two previous attempts were dropped. The MIURA-1 rocket, named after a breed of fighting bull, is as tall as a three-story building and has a 100-kilogram cargo capacity. “The launch carried a payload for test purposes, but this would not be released,” the company said.
Vamos MIURA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/bRnnkeSiZx
— PLD Space (@PLD_Space) October 7, 2023
A video from mission control showed engineers cheering and congratulating one another as the rocket rose into the night sky. “My voice is shot after so much shouting,” Mr. Raul Torres, Chief Executive of PLD Space, shared shortly after the launch.
Mr. Torres stated that all rocket systems worked “perfectly”, adding that the company would now focus on tripling its workforce. “This is just the beginning,” the Chief Executive added.
A first attempt to launch the MIURA-1 rocket in May was abandoned because of high-altitude winds. A second attempt in June failed when umbilical cables in the avionics bay did not all release in time, preventing the liftoff as smoke and flames spewed from the rocket.
Airspace, areas of the sea, and roads were closed around the high-security launch site ahead of the launch.
The new mission on the MIURA-1 demonstrator was the first of two scheduled suborbital missions. According to reports, the most critical test would be the development of orbital services on the larger MIURA-5, planned for 2025.
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