The German space agency DLR has selected seven cubesats for a late 2022 maiden launch of Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum rocket.
Isar Aerospace was selected as the first of two winners of the DLR microlauncher competition in April 2021, beating out Rocket Factory Augsburg and HyImpulse Technologies. In return for the 11 million euros ($13 million) in European Space Agency Boost! funding, the German launch startup is required to carry two 150-kilogram payloads of the German government’s choosing over two flights.
Announced December 13, seven cubesats from five institutions in Germany, Norway, and Slovenia were selected to launch aboard the first of the required two missions. The payloads will demonstrate technologies in the fields of communications and climate monitoring.
- DLR Responsive Space Competence Center (RSC³) in Trauen, Germany, will test its ability to develop and launch a 3U CubeSat within nine months (4kg)
- Technical University Berlin and the Institute of Aerospace Engineering in Berlin, Germany, will test a miniaturized transceiver for newly defined frequency bands aboard a 1U CubeSat (1.5kg)
- ZfT – Center for Telematics e.V. in Würzburg, Germany, will study volcanic ash clouds with three 3U CubeSats flying in formation (5kg)
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway, will demonstrate a 1U CubeSat developed by students (1.5kg)
- University of Maribor and the Institute of Electronics and Telecommunications in Maribor, Slovenia, will test a miniaturized transceiver that will enable encrypted communication with several ground stations around the world aboard a 3U CubeSat
The smallsats and an accompanying dispenser supplied by German launch services provider Exolaunch will weigh approximately 100 kilograms. The combined payload will be deployed into a polar orbit aboard the maiden flight of Isar’s two-stage Spectrum vehicle, which is designed to carry up to 1,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit.
In a statement, Isar Aerospace CEO Daniel Metzler called the announcement a significant milestone for launch services in Europe.
“It is great to be part of this pioneering program and we are looking forward to further shaping the cooperation between the public and private sector in European spaceflight,” said Metzler. “This collaboration will further contribute to the development of research and technology in space and will help growing the overall private space ecosystem in Europe.”
Isar Aerospace is currently entering a critical period in preparation for Spectrum’s debut. Early next year, the launch startup will be conducting structural, engine, and fairing separation testing, Metzler told European Spaceflight. Construction progress of the vehicle’s future launch facility in Norway will also be a key element to ensuring an on-time Spectrum debut in late 2022.
