A Bangkok space startup has announced it will launch a satellite aboard a 3D-printed rocket designed in California.
Private space tech firm Mu Space says it will send an unspecified payload into low-earth orbit in 2022 aboard a Terran 1 rocket made by Relativity, a Los Angeles-based firm founded by former employees of Elon Musk’s Space X and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin.
“Relativity has the vision, team, and technology to deliver exceptional advantages in launching mu Space’s payloads, and supporting our goal of creating an interplanetary society in the future,” said Mu Space CEO Varayuth “James” Yenbamroong in a statement.
Thailand’s baked durian to go into space today aboard US rocket
It will use a printing platform it has developed called Stargate that can fabricate in a proprietary metal alloy in what it describes as the “world’s first autonomous rocket factory.” (Ed. note: A robot-controlled rocket plant? Please don’t tell Skynet.)
The company says it can launch dedicated missions for US$10 million (about THB320 million) or send payloads up at upward of US$11,000 per kilogram.
Relativity posits itself as an industry disruptor aiming to cut fabrication and launch times down to days instead of years with a goal of one day sending the first 3D-printed rocket to Mars.
It has won rights to launch from California’s Cape Canaveral.
Mu Space launched in 2017 and became the first private Thai venture to be awarded a license to operate satellites by state regulators.
In July 2018, it launched some baked durian along with a bundle of experiments in a payload weighing 6 kilograms aboard a rocket made by Blue Origin.
Mu Space says its in the space race to “accelerate the adoption of Internet of Things (IoT) devices in smart cities, and encourage new space investments in the Asia-Pacific region.”
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