Miura 1 (previously called Arion 1)
is a
suborbital
A sub-orbital spaceflight is a spaceflight in which the spacecraft reaches outer space, but its trajectory intersects the atmosphere or surface of the gravitating body from which it was launched, so that it will not complete one orbital r ...
recoverable launch vehicle developed by the Spanish company
PLD Space
Payload Aerospace S.L. (PLD Space) is a Spanish company developing two partially-reusable launch vehicles called Miura 1 and Miura 5.
Miura 1 is designed as a sounding rocket for sub-orbital flights to perform research or technology development i ...
. It is planned to be the first recoverable launch vehicle in Europe.
The first launch is currently scheduled for the 15 January 2023.
Design
Miura 1 was originally proposed as a two-stage rocket capable of achieving suborbital flight. It was originally planned to be 12 m long, with a capacity of 250 kg (551 lb). The engines were to use
liquid oxygen
Liquid oxygen—abbreviated LOx, LOX or Lox in the aerospace, submarine and gas industries—is the liquid form of molecular oxygen. It was used as the oxidizer in the first liquid-fueled rocket invented in 1926 by Robert H. Goddard, an applica ...
and
kerosene
Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning "wax", and was regi ...
as propellants.
In its final design, Miura 1 is a 12.7 m long 0.7 m diameter one-stage rocket, propelled by one
TEPREL-B engine. The vehicle can fly a payload of up to 200 kg on a suborbital trajectory. The propulsion system is equipped with actuators to tilt the engine for an active
thrust vector control
Thrust vectoring, also known as thrust vector control (TVC), is the ability of an aircraft, rocket, or other vehicle to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine(s) or motor(s) to control the attitude or angular velocity of the ve ...
.
In its first mission it will carry 100 kg of payload to an apogee of 153 km. Additionally, Miura 1 is equipped with a recovery system using its engines and parachutes that enable PLD Space to recover the vehicle from the ocean and re-use the complete launch vehicle.
With this, it will be the first recoverable launch vehicle in Europe.
Miura 1 is intended to be used for scientific research or technology development in a microgravity environment and/or in the upper atmosphere. Furthermore, about 70% of the technology developed for Miura 1 is planned to be used on the Miura 5 orbital rocket.
In December 2019 GMV announced that the Miura 1 avionics system had passed the qualification phase.
In March 2020, the stress test of the Miura 1 pressurized tanks was carried out to check their ability to withstand the working pressure (more than ) with a successful result. COPVs (
Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel
A composite overwrapped pressure vessel (COPV) is a vessel consisting of a thin, non-structural liner wrapped with a structural fiber composite, designed to hold a fluid under pressure. The liner provides a barrier between the fluid and the compo ...
) are used to pressurize propellant tanks and are a fundamental element of many launchers.
In July 2020 the German
Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity
The Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity (ZARM) is a German scientific institution of University of Bremen involved in research in space technology with applications, among other things, in fundamental physics and gravitation. More ...
(ZARM) successfully completed vibration tests of its payload that will fly on the first launch (Test Flight-1) of Miura 1.
On April 7, 2022, the company carried out the first test of the complete launcher at its facilities in
Teruel
Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel Province. It has a population of 35,675 in 2014 making it the least populated provincial capital in the country. It is noted for its harsh climate, with ...
, being the first test in Europe of a rocket propelled by liquid fuel.
Launch schedule
The first test flight of Miura 1 was initially planned for 2021
from an experimental rocket launch site in
Huelva
Huelva (, ) is a city in southwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Huelva in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is between two short rias though has an outlying spur including nature reserve on the Gulf of Cádiz coast. The rias ...
, southwestern Spain, called
El Arenosillo
El Arenosillo Test Centre (CEDEA) is the name of a rocket launch site for suborbital rockets managed by INTA, located near Mazagón in Spain. It is located in the province of Huelva, Andalucía, in the southwest coast of Spain (37.1° N, 6.7 ...
,
and it will carry a payload from the German
Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity
The Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity (ZARM) is a German scientific institution of University of Bremen involved in research in space technology with applications, among other things, in fundamental physics and gravitation. More ...
(ZARM).
Up to eight suborbital launches are targeted per year. It has been delayed to 2022.
As of September 2022, the first test flight is scheduled to take place on 15 January 2023.
See also
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References
External links
Official Miura 1 product website
{{Portal bar, Spaceflight
Space launch vehicles of Spain
Reusable launch systems