Europe could expand its access to space with its own space capsule.
The Franco-German start-up The Exploration Company could become the European answer to SpaceX's Crew Dragon and Boeing's Starliner spacecraft.
Weßling (Bavaria)/Tampa (Florida) – The German-French start-up
The Exploration Company
could be Europe's answer to the SpaceX and Boeing space capsules.
With the Nyx space capsule, people can even be brought to the moon in the future.
But until then, there are still a few tests to be carried out and hurdles to be overcome, as reported by
kreiszeitung.de
.
The Exploration Company could become Europe's answer to SpaceX and Boeing projects
But why is another space capsule needed?
"We are developing two technologies that are critical to the security of Europe," explains Hélène Huby to the
Handelsblatt
.
She is the co-founder and CEO of
The Exploration Company
.
This includes docking with satellites and re-entry capabilities: “We want to be able to dock with Russian, Chinese, American space stations to build a bridge in the ecosystem and bring European values of cooperation and sustainability to space .”
Europe's odyssey with independence on the way to space
It is not at all improbable that Europe will have its own space capsule and thus access further into space.
"The war in Ukraine has created an awareness in Europe that we need independent access to space," says Huby.
However, Europe has gambled away this access with its missiles for the moment.
The launch of the new Ariane 6 rocket has been postponed to the end of 2023 – the last Ariane 5 rocket is scheduled to go into orbit in the middle of this year.
The smaller Vega-C has not yet had a successful start.
This means that European missions are dependent on foreign countries - mainly on the USA.
However, according to the Director General of the European Space Agency ESA, Josef Aschbacher, access to space is not at stake: "The short-term priority is to complete the maiden flight of Ariane 6 and a safe, speedy and robust return of Vega-C to flying quickly and efficiently." reliably safeguarded.” He explained this in January 2023 at the ESA annual press conference.
First test the heat shield and then to the bigger mission
If Ariane 6 actually takes off into space this year, that will also be the starting signal for the German-French space start-up.
Huby says Ariane 6 is set to launch a small re-entry demonstrator for startup
Bikini
.
This weighs about 40 kilograms and has a diameter of 60 centimeters.
The
Exploration Company
hopes to use this mission to gather data to test thermal protection and a home-grown onboard computer.
This allows them to check the shape of the larger capsules.
"Our baby capsule is stowed in a container and ready to fly," says Huby.
For 2024, the start-up plans to fly into space with the private space company SpaceX and its Falcon 9 launch vehicle.
A larger demonstration capsule, weighing 1,600 kilograms and 2.50 meters long, is said to be on board.
This capsule would have propulsion and a parachute for a more controlled re-entry after carrying payloads for customers, including European space agencies, on a short trip to low Earth orbit.
The Exploration Company wants to become Europe's gateway to space
The launch of the completed space capsule is scheduled for 2026.
The Nyx orbital vehicle is said to have a diameter of four meters and a mass of 8,000 kilograms.
SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft also has a diameter of four meters and a launch mass of 12,000 kilograms.
The Franco-German orbital capsule can spend several months in space, Huby explains to
SpaceNews
.
It could send 4,000 kilograms into orbit for up to six months and bring back 2,600 kilograms for 20,000 euros per kilogram.
However, the capsule will not be able to dock with the International Space Station ISS until 2027 at the earliest – a few years before the ISS retires.
The Lunar Gateway, the proposed space station in lunar orbit, could be an attractive target for
The Exploration Company
in the future - at least it plans to eventually bring cargo and manned missions to the moon.
