UK startup shows off ‘world’s largest 3D-printed rocket engine’

A UK-based space startup recently showed off its achievement what it calls to be the ‘world’s largest 3D-printed rocket engine’.

Startup named ‘Orbex’ displayed its Prime Rocket’s huge second stage, which is also the largest ever 3D-printed rocket engine made by any firm, and is also designed to run on bio-propane, which is a clean and renewable energy source that cuts carbon emissions by 90%.

According to Orbex, it is the first time a 3D-printed rocket engine was ‘uniquely manufactured in a single piece without joins’. This means that the rocket is up to 30% lighter and 20% more efficient than other small launchers. No joins also mean that the rocket can bear extreme temperature and pressure fluctuations better than others.

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The complete rocket, along with the engine, will stand at 56ft tall, around a quarter of the size of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. The Stage 2 rocket is a part of a multi-stage rocket that pushes a spacecraft into orbit after launching from Earth, as per Futurism.

Moreover, Orbex is planning to pull off its first launch in 2021 and has already partnered with Switzerland’s Astrocast to launch 64 nanosatellites in 2023 to build a global Internet of Things (IoT) network. Prime Rocket is a small satellite launcher that is aiming to be the first UK rocket to launch UK satellites from a UK launch site, noted NASA Spaceflight.