Is SpinLaunch scrapping its space catapult plans?

Remember SpinLaunch? The company made waves when it announced it was developing a centrifuge system to fire satellites into space using almost no fuel.

It’s been a while since the private space company announced any concrete plans. However, this week it revealed it will launch a Starlink-like internet satellite constellation to orbit. SpinLaunch could beat an impressive SpaceX record in the process. Surprisingly, though, it won’t use its centrifuge system when it starts firing those satellites into space next year. Instead, SpinLaunch will turn to traditional rockets. 

Speaking of, Isar Aerospace almost became the first company to fly a rocket to orbit from mainland Europe. Its Spectrum rocket crashed into the ocean less than a minute after launch. How did other space companies fare on their first launch? Let’s take a look below.

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AEROSPACE ENGINEERING SPOTLIGHT

SpinLaunch plans record-breaking satellite constellation

SpinLaunch has announced new plans to develop a broadband satellite constellation called Meridian Space. The constellation will be made up of small "microsatellites". These can be launched in batches of as many as 250 spacecraft at a time.

The private space company, known for its plans to develop a centrifuge system that catapults satellites to space, received $12 million in funding from Kongsberg NanoAvionics to develop the new Meridian Space constellation.

If SpinLaunch does manage to launch 250 satellites in one launch it will shoot straight past an impressive SpaceX record. SpaceX holds the record for the most satellites launched by a single flight. In 2021, Elon Musk's private space firm launched 143 satellites on its Transporter-1 mission.

SpinLaunch’s in-development Orbital Launch system will use a 108-foot-long (33-meter) mechanical arm to rotate payloads at speeds of 5,000mph. They will then be ejected from the system and into space. The company claims its new technology will eliminate 70 percent of the fuel and infrastructure requirements of a traditional rocket launch.

Surprisingly, though, SpinLaunch won’t use its centrifuge system to start firing its Meridian Space platform into orbit. Instead, it will start off by contracting the services of existing launch providers.

According to SpinLaunch CEO David Wrenn, the constellation will eventually be scaled up using the company’s Orbital Launch system. However, it aims to generate revenue sooner by launching its Meridian Space constellation to orbit before that system is ready.

“The orbital launch system and initial deployment of the constellation are parallel tracks to ensure the commissioning of each have independent critical paths and risk profiles,” Wrenn wrote on X. “Launching initially on traditional rockets accelerates deployment, proving value and performance early while building toward the long-term vision."

SpinLaunch has proved that a specially built cubesat can withstand the 10,000 Gs required to fire it into space. However, funding may be an issue when it comes to finalizing its Orbital Launch system. Last December, the company closed an $11 million funding round. Some reports claimed it was seeking a lot more.

AERO BULLETIN

Isar Aerospace: Comparing private space’s first launch attempts

Isar Aerospace’s first mission flew for less than a minute. If it had flown to orbit, the company’s orbital Spectrum rocket would have been the first to reach that milestone from mainland Europe.

Instead, it crashed into the ocean a short distance from the launch pad at Andøya Spaceport, Norway. Still, space experts weighed in with words of encouragement. 

Tom Mueller, a founding employee of SpaceX who led the development of Falcon 9’s Merlin engines, wrote on X: “At least it cleared the pad and acquired good data. This is about equal to the first flight of Falcon 1. A good start, and hopefully next flight makes orbit.”

Space is hard. Very few rockets reach orbit on their first attempt. Let’s take a look at a few private space companies’ first launch attempts.

SpaceX

As Mueller mentioned in his post about Isar Aerospace, SpaceX’s first rocket, Falcon 1, also failed to reach orbit on its first attempt. 

In fact, Falcon 1’s first launch was very similar to Spectrum’s first attempt. The rocket failed due to a fuel leak, and it was airborne for less than a minute. Falcon 1’s first launch took place in March 2006. SpaceX didn’t make it to orbit until September 2008.

Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket first flew in May 2017. The company’s small-lift launch vehicle did reach suborbital space, but it didn’t make it to orbit due to a telemetry issue. 

Electron successfully reached orbit on Rocket Lab’s second attempt in January 2018. The rocket deployed three cubesats during its second mission, called ‘Still Testing’.

Relativity Space

Relativity Space’s Terran 1 rocket first launched in March 2023. The 3D-printed launch vehicle failed to reach orbit due to a second-stage engine anomaly. It did pass the Kármán line, though. 

Soon after that first mission, Relativity Space announced it had collected enough data to shift its focus onto the development of its next rocket, Terran-R.

Space Pioneer

Chinese firm Space Pioneer became the first startup to reach orbit on its first attempt in April 2023 successfully.

The company’s Tianlong-2 rocket lifted a small satellite to a Sun-synchronous orbit. However, the following year, the company suffered an embarrassing setback when one of its rockets accidentally launched during what was supposed to be a static fire test.

Blue Origin

Impressively, Blue Origin’s heavy-lift New Glenn rocket reached orbit on its first attempt in January this year. New Glenn has more payload capacity than SpaceX’s Falcon 9, meaning it could seriously challenge Elon Musk’s space monopoly.

It’s worth noting, though, that New Glenn’s first launch was many years in the making. Blue Origin was founded in the year 2000. For comparison, SpaceX was founded in 2002, and Isar Aerospace in 2018.