U.S. startup SpinLaunch — the company that aims to disrupt the rapidly-growing satellite launch industry by catapulting payloads into space with minimal rocket fuel — has just passed a massive test.
The company launched a NASA payload into the sky before recovering it and inspecting the contents to see how they faired after being spun around in its Suborbital Accelerator at up to 10,000 g and 5,000 mph (8,000 km/h).
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NASA wasn’t the only payload flung into the sky. SpinLaunch also catapulted payloads from Airbus, Cornell University, and satellite developer Outpost. They were all spun around the company’s Suborbital Accelerator at 10,000 g before being launched skyward.
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SpinLaunch’s first-ever flight test took place last November, and the company’s kinetic launch system has been in development since 2015. The company’s 33-meter-diameter Suborbital Mass Accelerator is a prototype for its eventual full-size 100-meter Orbital Launch system, which it hopes to have ready for operational launches by 2026.
Both systems are circular accelerators, powered by an electric drive that use a mechanical arm to sling payloads around in circles to reach incredibly high speeds of up to 5,000 mph. They then release the payload through a launch tube and spaceward.
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Article URL : https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/spinlaunch-catapulted-a-nasa-payload