Good news! It is getting more crowded in space! 😊
"A rocket featuring the world’s first rocket engine 3D printed as a single piece blasted off from India’s east coast in late May. Startup Agnikul fabricated the engine in just 72 hours and hopes the approach could open the door to “on-demand” rocket launches for operators of small satellites.
The Chennai-based company isn’t the only private space operation to rely heavily on 3D printing—both Relativity Space and Rocket Lab use the approach extensively to build their launch vehicles. What sets Agnikul apart is that its engine is printed in one go, rather than as multiple components that have to then be stitched together, which significantly speeds up manufacturing time.
On 30 May, the company carried out its first suborbital launch powered by the engine. A single-stage rocket lifted off from the Indian Space Research Organisation’s Satish Dhawan Space Center on Sriharikota island in Andhra Pradesh, reaching an altitude of 6.5 kilometers before splashing down into the ocean. ...
The company’s first commercial product will be a two-stage rocket called Agnibaan, which will be 18 meters tall, feature eight engines in total and able to carry a 300-kilogram payload to an altitude of around 700 km. The launch vehicle used in May’s test was only 6 meters tall and featured just a single engine, making it roughly equivalent to Agnibaan’s second stage. ..."
AgniKul Cosmos (company website)
The Agnikul team stands in front of the company’s launch vehicle at the Satish Dhawan Space Center ahead of its first successful launch
Agnilet - A single piece, 3D printed, semi cryogenic engine.
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