Miura-1 (space rocket)

2023: Successful Launch

On October 7, 2023, the Spanish aerospace company PLD Space, founded in 2011, successfully launched the Miura-1 suborbital reusable rocket. This is the first launch of a completely private space rocket in Europe.

Miura-1 is a single-stage 12.5-meter carrier capable of taking on board up to 100 kg of payload during suborbital flights. After the mission, the missile is splashed in the ocean, which allows it to be used for repeated launches after recovery.

Rocket Miura-1

It is reported that the launch Miura-1 carried out from the site of the El Arenosillo test center of the National Institute of Space Technology of the Spanish municipality of Huelva. It was assumed that the flight will last approximately 12 minutes, and the rocket will reach an altitude of about 80 km from the surface of the Earth, that is, it will reach the border of space (in accordance with the classification of NASA and the US military). In fact, the flight lasted 306 second (a little more than 5 minutes), and the carrier was able to rise to an altitude of about 46 km. Nevertheless, the mission was recognized as a success, since the main "technical tasks" were completed.

The launch of Miura-1, the first rocket built 100% using Spanish technology, was successful. This is an important milestone that puts Spanish research, development and innovation at the forefront of space transport, PLD Space said.

Miura-1 is one of the key stages in the development of the Miura-5 - a two-stage launch vehicle 35 meters high, designed to launch satellites weighing no more than 500 kg into orbit. According to PLD Space statements, approximately 70% of the components developed for Miura-1 will be used in Miura-5. The first launch of this European carrier is scheduled for 2025.^[1]

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