Copenhagen suborbitals

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Copenhagen suborbitals
logo
legal form Volunteer Association
founding May 1, 2008
founder Peter Madsen , Kristian von Bengtson
Seat Refshaleøen , Copenhagen , DenmarkDenmarkDenmark 
purpose Manned space travel
Chair Kristian Elof Sørensen
Employees 50-60
Website www.copenhagensuborbitals.com

Copenhagen Suborbitals ( CS ) is a not -for-profit organization that has set itself the goal of flying a human into space on a suborbital flight .

The association works on the Danish island of Refshaleøen in the port of Copenhagen . Rocket launches are carried out from a mobile platform ( Sputnik ) in the Baltic Sea. The starting area has an approximate size of 70 x 35 km and is located near the island of Bornholm .

mission

The aim of Copenhagen Suborbitals is to fly an amateur astronaut over the internationally recognized limit of space of 100 kilometers and bring him or her safely back to Earth. This would make Denmark the fourth country after Russia, the USA and China that can fly a person into space on its own. The space capsules and rockets required for this are developed and built by Copenhagen Suborbitals.

The original plan was to publish all construction plans and other materials according to the open source principle. At the request of the Danish secret service PET , this is not done for reasons of national security.

The aim is to show that space travel can also be carried out by private individuals with a low budget, apart from government organizations.

history

Peter Madsen and Kristian von Bengtson (2010)

On May 1st, 2008, Copenhagen Suborbitals was founded by the Danish architect and former NASA consultant Kristian von Bengtson and the designer Peter Madsen .

Since 2009, Copenhagen Suborbitals has developed and built the hybrid rocket , HEAT-1X-Tycho Brahe . This 64 cm diameter rocket was propelled by an engine that works with liquid oxygen (LOX) and polyurethane . In 2010 the HEAT-1X-Tycho Brahe rocket made a first attempt at launch. This failed because a valve froze up and prevented the start. A second start attempt was made on June 3, 2011. The engine was switched off early because the missile's course deviation was too great. The missile reached a height of 2.8 km.

In 2012, a prototype of a TM65 liquid jet engine was completed. This engine should be operated with ethanol (75%) and LOX and provide a thrust of 65 kN . A first test in the test bench was announced on May 7, 2012 for May 17, 2012. On May 20, 2012, the TM65 was then successfully detonated for approximately 30 seconds.

On July 27, 2012, the first two-stage rocket from Copenhagen Suborbitals was successfully launched in the Baltic Sea. The Emerald has as the Heat-1X , a hybrid engine. Special features were u. A. A rotation of the rocket for stabilization and a separation of the two stages by burning a rope. Shortly after takeoff (takeoff acceleration> 20 g), the rocket lost its tip with the electronics for telemetry transmission. The engines fired successfully.

In August 2012 the space capsule Tycho Deep Space was completed and tested, among other things, for its ability to swim. On August 11, the space capsule was finally launched with its rescue rocket (also a hybrid drive) and reached an altitude of around one kilometer. The rescue rocket was detonated from the space capsule as planned and the capsule landed with the help of the parachutes.

Launch of the TDS capsule with the rescue rocket on August 12, 2012

The SAPPHIRE rocket, a hybrid rocket with an active guidance system , was launched on June 23, 2013, with the rocket reaching an altitude of 8.2 km.

On February 23, 2014, Copenhagen Suborbitals announced that founder Kristian von Bengtson is leaving the organization after an argument with Peter Madsen. After a long argument, Madsen also left the Copenhagen Suborbitals in June 2014. Von Bengtson was one of the initiators of a new missile project in 2015 and is now Chief Technology Officer of the resulting missile manufacturer Orbex ; Madsen was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder in 2018.

During a static test on August 16, 2014, the engine of the new HEAT-2X rocket caught fire and destroyed the entire engine part. The HEAT-2X was supposed to be the first missile that could cross the Kármán Line from a height of 100 kilometers.

In May 2016, the Danish Parliament passed a law regulating Danish space activities. Basically, it combines several UN treaties ratified by Denmark , but also closes gray areas in which Copenhagen Suborbitals found itself. Since the law goes into detail on the Copenhagen Suborbitals and the Danish Space Challenge , it is also called the “Copenhagen Suborbitals and Danish Space Challenge Law”.

After a two-year break, the Nexø 1 rocket was launched on July 23, 2016. This is not a hybrid rocket, but for the first time with a liquid rocket engine . Due to a valve error, the engine could not achieve full power, which is why only an altitude of 1.5 kilometers was reached.

Rockets, space capsules and engines

Spica

Spica is the rocket with which a manned flight into space is ultimately to be carried out. The basic structure was determined in 2014 and the rocket was named after Spica , the brightest star in the constellation Virgo .

In order to reach space, the 13-meter-high and around 4-ton rocket needs an engine with a power of 100 kN - which would make it by far the largest rocket ever built by amateurs. As with the BPM-5 engines of the Nexø rockets, ethanol is planned as the fuel and liquid oxygen (LOX) as the oxidizer . The efficiency of the drive is to be increased by a new control method by about 8-10%: instead of thrusters (jet vanes) that affect the exhaust gas flow, is now the entire engine be pivoted. Such a prototype for the BPM-5 engine was tested back in 2016.

Much of the technology required for the Spica missile is being tested with the smaller Nexø missiles.

Nexø 1 and 2

The purpose of the Nexø missiles is to test technologies for the Spica missile and gain experience with you. Nexø 1 and 2 were named after the Bornholm town of Nexø , the port from which the start area east of the island is set off. With the BPM-5 engine, it is the first rockets from Copenhagen Suborbitals to use liquid rocket engines instead of hybrid engines.

The main difference between Nexø 1 and Nexø 2 is how fuel and oxidizer get into the engine: With Nexø 1, the tanks themselves are pressurized with helium . In this way, fuel and oxidizer are pressed into the engine. Due to the falling pressure when the tanks empty, the performance of the rocket decreases in the course of the flight. A so-called DPR system (Dynamic Pressure Regulation) will be used at Nexø 2. A tank with compressed helium will push the fuel and oxidizer into the engine. Due to the very high pressure in the helium tank, the power is easy to control and hardly decreases during the flight. With this additional tank, Nexø 2 is 6.7 m taller than the 5.6 m high Nexø 1.

Nexø 1 was launched off Bornholm on July 23, 2016. Due to a frozen valve, the engine was not supplied with enough oxygen, which was too warm, which is why the full power could not be used. The rocket accelerated with a comparatively low 0.2 g and only reached an altitude of 1.5 km. Due to a misinterpretation of the on-board computer, the parachute was not ejected during the descent, which is why the rocket hit the Baltic Sea about 300 meters away from the Sputnik launch platform.

The original plan was to launch Nexø 2 in summer 2017. The murder of Kim Wall by Peter Madsen and the resulting high level of media interest in Madsen's past, together with other reasons, ultimately led to the launch being postponed by a year. On August 4, 2018, the Nexø 2 was successfully launched and flew about 6500 meters high. For the first time, Copenhagen Suborbitals managed to recover a missile largely intact.

BPM-2 and BPM-5

BPM (Bi-propellant motor) -2 and -5 are smaller liquid rocket engines, each with 2 and 5 kN thrust. A mixture of 75% ethanol and 25% water is used as fuel. Liquid oxygen acts as an oxidizer.

BPM-2 is a very rudimentary engine that was developed solely for test purposes. It is easy to manufacture and therefore easy to replace. Mainly, the ratio of ethanol and water in the fuel was optimized with the BPM-2 engine.

BPM-5 is the engine of the Nexø missile and an intermediate step to the BPM-100 engine, which is supposed to power the Spica missile. A number of tests were also carried out on the BPM-5 engine. For example, various additives in the fuel and various materials for the thrusters were tested. Most of all, the many tests are used to understand the performance of the engine under various conditions.

The engine is regeneratively cooled. The fuel is directed around the combustion chamber, absorbing a large part of the heat. The BPM-5 is made of aluminum.

HEAT-2X

With a height of 10.7 m, HEAT-2X was the largest rocket ever constructed by the Copenhagen Suborbitals. She was supposed to be the first to cross the Kármán Line and transport the Tycho Deep Space 80 capsule. However, the launch, which was planned for summer 2014, never happened. In a static test, the inner wall of the regeneratively cooled TM-65LE engine imploded. The escaping fuel set the entire test bench on fire and caused irreparable damage to the rocket.

Sapphire

Sapphire is the smallest rocket launched by Copenhagen Suborbitals and at the same time the first to be actively controlled by the on-board computer with the help of copper thrusters. On June 23, 2013, the Sapphire deviated only 90 meters from the target, directly above the launch platform, and reached an altitude of 8.25 km.

The rocket , weighing around 200 kg, was powered by a hybrid rocket engine that accelerated the Sapphire to up to 1238 km / h ( Mach 1.03). The solid fuel consisted of polyurethane grains, while nitrous oxide , also known as laughing gas , acted as an oxidizer .

Tycho Deep Space

The capsule nicknamed "Beautiful Betty" is reminiscent of the command module of the Apollo spacecraft of NASA , however, is only half as large and can accommodate one instead of three astronauts. Tycho Deep Space was in production from 2011 to 2012 and underwent numerous tests before launch. For example, the parachute ejection, the impact on the water and the ability to swim were tested. The rescue missile (LES) has also been tested several times.

On August 11, 2012, the capsule was then launched by its rescue rocket. The flight went flawlessly, but for safety reasons the rescue rocket could only be disconnected after the fire had closed. As a result, there was not enough time to stabilize the capsule with the drag parachute, which is why the main parachute was ejected early. The remaining time was not enough to fully unfold, which is why the capsule landed hard on the water and could later be recovered.

emerald

Emerald is the only two-stage CS rocket to date. Like the Sapphire, the Smaragd uses a valveless hybrid rocket engine with polyurethane as fuel and nitrous oxide as an oxidizer.

After some delays, the Smaragd was launched off Bornholm on July 27, 2012. Only 1.8 seconds after take-off, however, the tip of the rocket fell off along with all of the on-board electronics. Due to a design flaw, it could not withstand the very strong acceleration of around 20 g, which is why almost no useful telemetry data could be collected.

The second stage started as planned after a rope burned through, but was not completely filled with fuel for testing purposes. In the end, the Smaragd reached an altitude of 8.2 kilometers.

HEAT-1X

The first rocket launched by Copenhagen Suborbitals was the HEAT-1X (Hybrid Exo Atmospheric Transporter). She launched the Tycho-Brahe -1 capsule, named after the Danish astronomer, with a crash test dummy on board. First, the 9.38 m high and 1627 kg rocket was to be launched on September 5, 2010. However, since a valve for the oxygen supply froze up, the start had to be aborted.

HEAT-1X - TYCHO BRAHE - Second start attempt (2011)

On June 3, 2011, a second start attempt was made. After a few seconds the missile tilted about 30 °. The rocket then approached the border of the launch area, which is why the engine was manually switched off after 15 seconds of flight. The unfavorable flight angle also meant that the parachute could not be ejected correctly. That is why the rocket hit the Baltic Sea at high speed. The Tycho Brahe capsule landed severely damaged with a partially torn parachute and was recovered. Instead of the originally planned 16 km altitude, 2.8 km were reached.

Despite its size, the HEAT-1X was based on simple rocket technology. For example, it was controlled purely passively by so-called rollerons. Metal wheels are attached to the fins. These are very strongly accelerated by the air flow during the flight and then act as gyroscopes to prevent the rocket from turning on its own axis. A hybrid rocket engine with polyurethane as the fuel and liquid oxygen (LOX) as the oxidizer is also used. The flight proved that it is possible to launch a rocket from a floating launch platform on the Baltic Sea . A passive control was excluded for later large rockets, which is why an active steering system was started.

Tycho Brahe

Tycho-Brahe is a so-called Micro Spacecraft (MSC) and the first space capsule designed by Copenhagen Suborbitals. It consists of a 64 cm wide steel shell that is insulated with cork . In order to minimize the diameter of the capsule, which weighs only 300 kg, the passenger, a crash test dummy, should be in a half-standing position on the one flight. As a passenger, you could have watched the flight through a plexiglass dome at the top of the capsule. The manned capsule would also have contained a simple life support system. The capsule was to be slowed down by a high-speed braking parachute and a main parachute.

Astronauts

Two Copenhagen Suborbitals members are candidates for the first manned mission (as of April 2018):

  • Mads Stenfatt, financial analyst
  • Carsten Olsen, kindergarten teacher

Starting sequence

Andøya in Norway, Kiruna in Sweden or Keflavík in Iceland were initially considered as a starting point . However, these launch sites do not meet the requirements for a manned, suborbital flight, which is why the military training area ESD138 / ESD139 east of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea was ultimately determined as the launch site after consultation with the Danish authorities. The mobile launch platform (MLP) Sputnik was designed to be able to start from sea. Initially it had to be pulled by Peter Madsen's submarine UC3 Nautilus , but was later equipped with its own diesel engines. Among other things, these ships took part in various missions:

  • MHV Hjortø , a ship of the Danish Navy Home Service , which, among other things, served as a mission control center for the HEAT-1X launch.
  • M / S Vostok , originally the rescue cruiser G. Kuchenbecker of the DGzRS , as mission control ship for all missions from 2012 onwards. At the end of 2017, the Vostok was sold to a ship collector.
  • M / S Antares , as a supply boat
  • Bolette Munkholm , a converted fishing cutter , as a mission control ship for future missions

Map: Denmark
marker
Southern limit of the starting area​
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Denmark

financing

Copenhagen Suborbitals is financed by crowdfunding : Supporters from all over the world donate to the project, many of them monthly as members of Copenhagen Suborbitals Support. This support group was founded on October 5th, 2010, has more than 600 members and covers most of the fixed costs such as rent and electricity. There are also numerous sponsors, donations in kind and income from lectures. The annual budget of Copenhagen Suborbitals is therefore 1.5 million Danish kroner, the equivalent of around 200,000 euros. That's about ten percent of NASA's coffee budget .

Awards

On October 3, 2013, Copenhagen Suborbitals was awarded the "Breitling Milesone Trophy" of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur .

Web links

Commons : Copenhagen Suborbitals  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Meet the amateurs trying to put a human in space . August 16, 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  2. ↑ a b About us - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018 .
  3. ↑ How we work. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2012, archived from the original on May 15, 2012 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  4. ↑ Launch site. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2012, archived from the original on May 15, 2012 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  5. ↑ Chris Stokel-Walter: The mad, volunteer-run mission to fire a human into space by 2030. In: wired.co.uk. Condé Nast Britain, April 21, 2018, accessed June 18, 2018 .
  6. ↑ Mission. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2011, archived from the original on September 1, 2011 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  7. ↑ a b c d Philipp Kohlhöfer: Stenfatt wants to go into space (Olsen too. And there is only one place) . In: Media-Saturn Germany GmbH (Ed.): Turn On - The Saturn magazine . March / April 2018. Companions GmbH, April 2018, ISSN  2512-8361 , p. 6-13 .
  8. ↑ a b c d HEAT-1X - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018 .
  9. ↑ Peter Madsen: En stor dag for Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: ing.dk. May 21, 2012, archived from the original on May 23, 2012 ; Retrieved June 18, 2018 (Danish).
  10. ↑ TM65 Liquid propellant rocket engine. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2012, archived from the original on May 16, 2012 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  11. ↑ Kristian von Bengtson : TM65 Liquid Propellant Engine Test May 17 - Open For the Public . In Wired on May 7, 2012, accessed on May 13, 2012
  12. ↑ Peter Madsen: T-6 dage - Hectisk stemning som altid! In: ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, May 11, 2012, archived from the original on May 24, 2012 ; Retrieved June 18, 2018 (Danish).
  13. ↑ Kristian von Bengtson : Bi-Liquid Success at Copenhagen Suborbitals . In Wired on May 21, 2012, accessed on June 16, 2012
  14. ^ Peter Madsen: Debriefing Smaragd. In: ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, July 28, 2012, archived from the original on February 2, 2013 ; Retrieved June 18, 2018 (Danish).
  15. ↑ a b Tycho Deep Space - Beautiful Betty. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2013, archived from the original on October 21, 2013 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  16. ↑ a b Kristian von Bengtson : DIY Capsule Drop Test Evaluations . In Wired on June 18, 2012, accessed on August 5, 2012
  17. ↑ a b Launch Campaign 2012. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2013, archived from the original on October 21, 2013 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  18. ↑ Test successful: amateur rocket from the hardware store flies 8,000 meters high on WirtschaftsWoche on June 26, 2013
  19. ↑ Helena Sjögren: Nu hoppar han av danska rymdprojektet. In: expressen.se. Kvällstidningen Expressen, February 26, 2014, accessed February 26, 2014 (Swedish).
  20. ↑ a b HEAT-2X - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018 .
  21. ↑ Lov om aktiviteter i det ydre rum. In: retsinformation.dk. May 12, 2016, accessed July 19, 2018 (Danish).
  22. ↑ Rasmus Ragdestein: The Copenhagen Suborbitals Act. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Copenhagen Suborbitals, December 3, 2015, accessed July 19, 2018 (UK English).
  23. ↑ a b Nexø I - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018 (UK English).
  24. ↑ Majken Christensen: They are 1000 times as small as SpaceX - but their ambition is just as high. In: Astronomicca.com. July 9, 2017, accessed June 18, 2018 .
  25. ↑ Spica - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 23, 2018 (UK English).
  26. ↑ Nexø II - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 24, 2018 (UK English).
  27. ^ The complete story of Nexø I. In: YouTube.com. Copenhagen Suborbitals, May 23, 2017, accessed May 24, 2018 .
  28. ↑ Copenhagen Suborbitals: A walkthrough of the Nexø II rocket (Part I). In: YouTube.com. May 15, 2018, accessed May 25, 2018 .
  29. ↑ Meet the amateur astronauts trying to crowdfund their way into orbit. In: Digital Trends. November 5, 2017. Retrieved May 24, 2018 .
  30. ^ Theresa Münch: Danish amateurs want to go into space. In: neue-deutschland.de. August 11, 2018. Retrieved August 18, 2018 .
  31. ↑ Copenhagen Suborbitals: BPM 2 - Throatless test engine. In: YouTube.com. April 4, 2015, accessed May 24, 2018 .
  32. ↑ BPM5 engine - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. January 16, 2017, archived from the original on January 16, 2017 ; accessed on May 24, 2018 (English).
  33. ↑ 'Katapultsæde' til dansk rumkapsel skydes op til 1.2 kilometers from få dage. In: ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, August 1, 2017, accessed on May 25, 2018 (Danish).
  34. ↑ Sapphire - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 25, 2018 (UK English).
  35. ↑ Thomas Djursing: Kæmpe succes: Raket fløj lodret over otte kilometer. In: Ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, June 23, 2013, archived from the original on June 24, 2013 ; Retrieved May 25, 2018 (Danish).
  36. ^ Ruben Hansen: Copenhagen Suborbitals LES Test. In: YouTube.com. December 30, 2011, accessed May 26, 2018 .
  37. ↑ Tycho Deep Space - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 26, 2018 (UK English).
  38. ↑ Emerald rockets are clear: Now CS skyde højt ¢ and ligeud. In: ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, August 1, 2017, accessed on May 25, 2018 (Danish).
  39. ↑ Emerald - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 25, 2018 (UK English).
  40. ↑ Danskarna lyckades skjuta upp hemmagjord raket. July 27, 2012, accessed May 25, 2018 .
  41. ↑ HEAT-1X report. Copenhagen Suborbitals, May 30, 2013, accessed May 25, 2018 .
  42. ↑ Elmar Jung: The hair dryer was her fate . In: Financial Times Deutschland, September 7, 2010, p. 28.
  43. ↑ Danish discount rocket covers 2.8 kilometers. In: news.ORF.at. June 4, 2011, accessed May 25, 2018 .
  44. ↑ Henry Spencer; Steven K. Kasow: Rollerons. Retrieved May 26, 2018 (English).
  45. ↑ Kristian von Bengtson: Quick Reference Guide to Copenhagen Suborbitals Spacecrafts. In: Wired. Retrieved May 26, 2018 .
  46. ↑ Smaranda Biliuti: Danish Manned Spacecraft Built by Volunteers. In: softpedia. Retrieved May 26, 2018 .
  47. ^ Spacecraft. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. 2010, archived from the original on October 4, 2010 ; accessed on June 18, 2018 (English).
  48. ↑ Ground launch site - den onde joker - Rumfart på den anden måde | Ingeniøren. In: ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, June 11, 2009, accessed on May 26, 2018 (Danish).
  49. ^ Mette Buck Jensen: Nyt fra raket-holdet: Vi når Nexø kl. 20.30. In: ing.dk. Mediehuset Ingeniøren A / S, September 1, 2010, archived from the original on March 13, 2012 ; accessed on May 26, 2018 (Danish).
  50. ↑ Copenhagen Suborbitals: Our platform for launching rockets at sea. In: YouTube.com. March 8, 2018, accessed May 26, 2018 .
  51. ↑ Kristian von Bengtson: Visual Guide to the Copenhagen Suborbitals Armada. In: Wired. November 2012, accessed May 26, 2018 .
  52. ↑ a b The final journey of Vostok - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 26, 2018 (UK English).
  53. ^ Support Us - Copenhagen Suborbitals. In: copenhagensuborbitals.com. Retrieved May 22, 2018 (UK English).
  54. ^ Smith, Julian. " How the final frontier just got democratised ", page 6. Wired , May 20, 2015. Archived on May 25, 2015.
  55. ↑ James Clasper: Meet the amateurs trying to put a human in space. August 18, 2016, accessed May 24, 2018 (UK English).
  56. ↑ Rakettur belønnet med fornem pris. Retrieved May 26, 2018 .

Coordinates: 55 ° 41 ′ 29.1 ″  N , 12 ° 37 ′ 1.21 ″  E