If you are still waiting with anticipation for the Elche-born rocket MIURA 1 to take to the skies and join the space race, you will have to wait a little longer, until after the summer, as the National Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA) and PLD Space have agreed to delay the launch window until September, mainly due to security reasons.
Although the weather postponed the inaugural flight, something which never poses a problem in the futuristic films you might have seen, this latest postponement is motivated by the obligatory fulfilment of the prevention of forest fires, and so, through consultation with such bodies as the Guardia Civil, it has been agreed that the risk of the rocket setting fire to the surroundings as it heads for the stars is too great.
After having postponed the launch on May 31 due to the strong high-altitude winds registered in Huelva, PLD Space had to abort the launch of MIURA 1 on June 17 due to one of the umbilical cables that connect the rocket with the avionics bay being released 0.25 seconds late, resulting in the next umbilical not being released in time, causing an auto-abort sequence that shut down the engines and halted launch. Both mother and baby, or the rocket and launch pad to put it another way, are in perfect condition.
Raúl Torres, CEO and co-founder of PLD Space, highlights: “Launching a rocket designed from scratch is a major challenge and we successfully complete 99.9% of all pre-launch procedures, reaching the countdown. The entire pre-launch phase was a resounding success and we are very close to successfully launching Europe’s first reusable rocket, which has recovery and reusability requirements that only 3 companies in space history have achieved.”
Here´s to September and fulfilling that 0.1% that let the side down.
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