The Japanese company Sling is known mainly for its cars and motorcyclesbut it is not the only thing it produces. Also engines for different types of machinery, Energy solutions, Robots And even a light reaction plane, the Hondajet. For four years, it also has a department of Space R&D that has just achieved an important milestone when throwing and successfully landing a reusable rocket for the first time.
The rocket is still far from the achievements of Spacexbut with him Honda advances in the right direction. Has a length of 6.3 meters and 900 kg of weightreached an altitude of 271.4 meters And, above all, he managed to land alone 37 centimeters of its objective, which is great precision. The take -off took place this Tuesday in a Honda installation in Taiki Townin Hokkaidoa Japanese town increasingly linked to spatial development.
The flight was brief, just 56.6 secondsbut at that time Honda managed to demonstrate key technologies for reuse, such as flight stability and the landing capacity.
Compared to Spacex’s trajectory, Honda is at a point similar to that of the company of Elon Musk In 2012, when the Grasshopper rocket, precursor to the technologies that led to the current Falcon and Starship, managed to take off and land for the first time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtw-vloynkq
Why Honda is building rockets
Honda explained what he wants Take advantage of key technologies that already dominates To offer Space services. Considers that reusable rockets are essential for the Sustainable space transport And its goal is to achieve Suborbital launches for 2029. Although a decision on its marketing has not yet been made, the company considers to launch remote observation satellites and communications in the future.
The Japanese manufacturer sees a Growing demand for satellite releases and aspires to participate developing reusable rockets that make these releases cheaper. If you get customers, you could become a new competitor in the space release sector that Spacex leads
In addition, although he has not confirmed it, to develop his own launch system would allow him, in the future, Put your own satellites in orbit They could offer SERVICES TO YOUR VEHICLES and add value for its users.
An increasingly competitive space
Honda joins an increasingly wide list of companies that work in Reusable rocket technology. The best known are Spacex and Blue Originbut there are many other companies around the world immersed in the same goal.
In USAstand out Rocket Labwhich develops the neutron rocket, and Relativity Spacecentered on the terran r, both totally reusable. They are also Stoke Spacewith the ambitious nova, and Firefly Aerospacewhich plans partial reuse in its next vehicles.
In Europethe French Arianegroup works at the demonstrator Thanmis and in the future reusable Ariane, while in Germany, Isar Aerospace and Rocket Factory Augsburg They advance in reusable rocket designs.
In Chinastate companies such as CALT and Casicas well as private actors such as ISPACE and LandspaceThey are testing similar technologies with test flights already performed.
In Indiathe space agency Isro He has completed successful trials from his RLV-TD and projects reusable suborbital launches in the coming years.