Reusable or Lightweight, Esa Boosts New European Launchers

The European Space Agency signs new contracts, one worth 230 million euros with ArianeGroup to continue developing the Prometheus engine and the reusable stage, and another 44 million euros with three German companies and one British company to bring small payload rockets to the launch pad.

BY EMILIO COZZI

Something is moving in Europe on the way to space. These are the decisive months to determine which path the Old Continent will take to access space. Although still in testing, the engines igniting indicate the upcoming launches of five entities working on as many space launchers for the near future. Only one is already a giant, ArianeGroup (a joint venture between Airbus and Safran), working on what will likely be the first reusable stage that the European Space Agency and Europe as a whole will have at their disposal. The others are determined companies, for the first time, aiming beyond the atmosphere.

In November, ESA announced it had allocated funds to continue this strategic chapter for autonomy in orbit access. This phase follows shortly after the (partial) end of the “launcher crisis,” which for over a year had tied continental space ambitions to SpaceX’s availability.

New Funds for Prometheus and the Reusable Stage

Prometheus è un propulsore a spinta variabile, che per cominciare consentirà il riutilizzo del secondo dimostratore Themis, sviluppato dalla francese ArianeGroup, e che completerà le fasi finali di validazione in vista di un debutto ormai prossimo. I test iniziali del motore nel sito di Vernon, in Francia, sono stati un successo. Adesso Prometheus affronterà la fase di validazione, che prevede il test di accensione di lunga durata (il long-duration hot fire test). 

Prometheus is a variable-thrust engine that will initially enable the reuse of the second demonstrator, Themis, developed by the French ArianeGroup, and will complete the final stages of validation ahead of its imminent debut. Initial tests of the engine at the Vernon site in France were successful. Now, Prometheus will undergo the validation phase, which includes (the long-duration hot fire test).

As ArianeGroup specifies, the engine has a nominal thrust of 120 tons, equivalent to the Vulcain 2.1 engine of Ariane 6, but at lower production costs, with some components 3D printed, and the goal of reducing production costs by up to ten times compared to the first stage of the now-retired Ariane 5. Prometheus is designed to power both reusable and expendable launchers. 

The funds allocated to ArianeGroup will not only go toward the development of Prometheus and the second Themis demonstrator, but also Maia, a rocket developed by MaiaSpace, a fully-owned subsidiary of the Franco-German group. Maia is a partially reusable launcher that will use the Themis architecture for its first stage and incorporate Prometheus engines. In other words, while this investment represents only the first step in the development of an institutional reusable rocket for Europe, it is clear how much it will contribute to the future commercial success of MaiaSpace.

Another 230 Million on the Table

With two new contracts totaling 230 million euros, ESA aims to ensure the realization of the second Themis and a rapid debut of Prometheus on the launch pad. Not least, the arrival of the stage (powered by the Prometheus engine) capable of performing the delicate maneuver of atmospheric re-entry. These acrobatics have so far only been successfully demonstrated by SpaceX.

ArianeGroup will build a new reusable demonstrator stage with its partners, including SSC in Sweden, Sener in Spain, Sabca in Belgium, Almatech and Apco in Switzerland, and MTA in Germany. The first flight test will involve a launch and medium-altitude landing (hop test) at the Esrange base in Kiruna, Sweden. Further tests at higher altitudes will be scheduled later, as explained by ESA in the announcement of the new contracts.

The Crucial Moment for Micro-Launchers

Excluding ArianeGroup, the other companies are all newcomers: three German companies and one British company, developing and testing space launchers for small payloads. This is the first time that the European duopoly of ArianeGroup/Avio has been broken, thanks to ESA’s “European Launcher Challenge” (a call for launcher proposals) and Boost! initiative. Under this program, ESA has allocated an additional 44.22 million euros to give a new push (a “boost,” indeed) to four entities preparing for the launch pad. ESA recognizes that the moments just before a debut flight are the most delicate.

German company Rocket Factory Augsburg, which has already begun integrated tests on its RFA One (1,300 kg in polar orbit), encountered a setback during first-stage checks last summer. “Boost! co-financing will help RFA prepare the hardware for the next first-stage flight for further tests and launches,” ESA explains. Since 2020, RFA has had an agreement with the French space agency CNES to use the Diamant launch site at the French Guiana spaceport, as well as the launch pad on the Norwegian island of Andøya.

The same goes for another German company, Isar Aerospace, also with an agreement to launch from Andøya. The company is conducting integrated tests on the stages of its Spectrum launcher (up to 1,000 kg in low Earth orbit, 700 kg in sun-synchronous orbit). The funds from this Boost! contract will focus on completing the testing campaign to prepare for the first test flight of the rocket. Additionally, ESA’s support will follow the preparation phases for the second test flight of Spectrum and the expansion of production facilities at the company’s new site in Vaterstetten, Germany.

Light Launchers in the New Space Economy

British company Orbex is moving towards the first demonstration flight of its Prime launcher (180 kg in low Earth orbit). The contract, according to ESA, covers “important steps for qualifying the carbon fiber fuel tanks and testing and launching the integrated Prime.”

Another German company, HyImpulse, will also benefit from the new ESA support. This year, it successfully launched its suborbital rocket SR75 from the SaxaVord spaceport in the Shetlands. The company’s efforts are now focused on developing SL1, a three-stage launcher capable of carrying 600 kg to sun-synchronous orbit. “Boost! co-financing will help advance significant subsystems toward integrated testing, such as the SL1 version of the hybrid engine, third-stage propulsion systems, and avionics systems.”

Looking at the launch capabilities of these vehicles, it’s clear that they would form a versatile “fleet” available to EU countries and ESA: all are “light” launchers, with performance below that of established competitors, but promising greater flexibility, thanks to lower costs and increased agility in preparing a flight, particularly from “peripheral” spaceports for polar orbits.

They are emerging in a new context defined by the needs of the new space economy, with more frequent launches and smaller satellites with reduced size and mass, to be launched in dozens. The orbit business is becoming the privileged territory for smallsats, nanosats, and picosats. If transportation methods adapt to this revolution, they could, in turn, stimulate change. The question remains whether and how successful this will be. And whether that success will be European.