Robert Habeck, Vice-Chancellor and Minister of the Economy in Germany, said that “unhindered access to the European space is strategically crucial”.
“With the first launch of Isar Aerospace Spectrum Rocket, Germany has demonstrated impressively that this is an important location for the development of innovative space technologies,” wrote Habeck on Linkedin. “The first flight has provided important data and experience for the next flight of the rocket … Isar Aerospace can and will make a decisive contribution to securing independent access from Europe to space!”
The Spectrum rocket is the largest launch vehicle mainly built in Germany, supplanting V-2 missile from the Second World War.
In recent months, representatives of the European government have highlighted their desire to free themselves from relying on other countries for defense and space technology. Europe was a longtime client of the Soyuz rocket in Russia, but the partnership ended in 2022 with the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. The delays in the early days of the Ariane 6 rocket and failures with the smallest VEGA rocket forced European governments to sign contracts with SpaceX to launch several scientific satellites and security.
Daniel Metzler, co-founder and CEO of Isar Aerospace, speaks during an event in Munich on January 12, 2024.
Credit: Matthias Balk / Picture Alliance via Getty Images
Metzler, director general of Isar, was requested last year what he would consider as an inaugural leak in successful specter.
“For me, the first flight will be a success if we are not exploding the launch site,” he said at the Handelsblatt Innovation conference. “It would probably be the thing that would do us best in terms of technology and time.”
This temperature of expectations seems remarkably similar to the statements made by Elon Musk on the first flight of the Starship of SpaceX in 2023.
Depending on this measure, ISAR officials can be satisfied with Sunday’s result. The company models its testing strategy on the iterative development cycle of SpaceX, where engineers test early, make fixes and fly again. This contrasts strongly with the way Europe has traditionally developed rockets. The alternative to Isar’s approach could be to “spend 15 years looking for, making simulations, then doing things the first time,” said Metzler.
With the first spectrum launch, Isar tested the rocket. Now it’s time to fix and steal again. It is, according to the leaders of Isar, will be the real measure of success.
“We are super happy,” Metzler said during a press call after Sunday flight. “This is the moment that people are proud, and for Europe, frankly, to be proud.”
