“We request authorization to launch Miura 1”. Thus, at 2:17 a.m. this Saturday, the two-minute countdown began to launch the first 100% Spanish rocket.. It was 2:19 when the technicians from PLD Space and the INTA (National Institute of Aerospace Technology) finally made the dream of the first Spanish rocket become a reality.. After two failed attempts, the early morning of this Saturday, October 7, was the date decided to send Miura 1 into space.
At 2:19 a.m. a large flare invaded the Huelva night (and the screens), while several hoses threw water non-stop so that it would not catch fire.. The rocket began to rise and at 2:22 it was already 45 kilometers high.. “There are no fires on the ramp, it is in perfect condition,” the technicians could be heard saying.
The place chosen for the launch was a place very close to the Doñana National Park, between the beaches of Mazagón and Matalascañas (Huelva), where INTA has facilities. In fact, the Parador de Turismo on the beach shortly before reaching Mazagón and its sands were the place where fans and curious people could watch the launch.
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The entire launch sequence and its preparations could be followed in streaming, seeing how the excitement grew greater every minute.
On May 31, the company postponed the flight of its launcher due to high winds and on June 17, when it tried again, an automatic takeoff abort occurred just 0.2 seconds from the end of the countdown. .
During the last few weeks, PLD Space has successfully completed the two pre-tests, the umbilical cable tests and a full load test that includes the procedures before starting the engine.
After the successful launch tonight, the rocket was to re-enter the atmosphere and fall into the Atlantic, where a ship on the high seas was prepared to collect its remains.
The final objective of the launch is to carry out a first flight test that allows the technology developed so far by the Elche company to be validated in real conditions.
With this milestone, Miura 1 has become the first 100% Spanish private rocket to go to space. The interior cameras of the ship allowed us to see how some objects were affected by the lack of gravity, as explained by two of the members of PLD Space.
The executive president of PLD Space, Ezequiel Sánchez, who is in El Arenosillo, explained to EFE that at 7:00 a.m. operations began to load and prepare the vehicle for flight, and that it was placed vertically at 3:00 p.m. , continuing with the development of the tasks necessary for the launch for another 11 hours.
In his opinion, what PLD Space is doing is “a unique feat in Europe. “We are carrying out a flight that is the first private European company that has been able to place a rocket on the flight ramp.”
Likewise, he explained that tonight was an “experimental” launch and what they are looking for is “to be able to capture the information to feed back our aerodynamics, propulsion models, the structures themselves and improve the design of Miura 5 that is planned for be able to launch at the end of 2025”.