Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Vector Space Systems

Alone in the Mojave desert, the tiny rocket stood barely as tall as a basketball goal backboard. Launch control was a laptop inside a nearby bunker, and the small gathering of aerospace engineers and investors seemed almost like a rocket hobby club as it watched the vehicle soar to about 5,000 feet before parachuting back to Earth. But this scene may have represented something much more than that. With its small-scale test Saturday, the company Vector Space Systems took another step toward upending the rapidly expanding small satellite launch market.

Not since the Germans and their V-2 rockets during World War II has anyone launched more than a few dozen of the same rockets per year. Now, within about five years Vector intends to launch as many as 100 of its 13-meter-tall Wolverine vehicles annually, with a capability to put a 50kg satellite into low-Earth orbit. The company aims to fill a niche below the current generation of launchers being developed by companies such as RocketLab and Virgin Galactic, with rockets capable of delivering 200 to 250kg satellites to low-Earth orbit.

So far, it seems like a good bet. On Tuesday morning, Vector announced that it has acquired its first customer, Finnish-based Iceye, to conduct 21 launches of the company’s commercial synthetic aperture radar satellite constellation. “Getting your satellite into orbit is one of the biggest challenges for new-space companies, but there just isn’t the launch capacity right now,” Iceye Chief Executive Rafal Modrzewski said in a news release.

Small satellites, big market

The two companies are already working together. According to Jim Cantrell, chief executive of Vector Space Systems, Saturday’s test flight in Mojave, California, carried a prototype of an Iceye microsatellite core computing and communications systems to see if it would survive launch conditions (it did). Vector’s sub-scale launcher, named the P-20, also tested some prototype upper stage engines.

The test will help Vector finalize design of its Wolverine rocket, which is based upon technology from Garvey Spacecraft Corporation. The two-stage rocket will be powered by liquid fuels, and it's made of all composites. Gross liftoff weight is 5 tons. Vector intends to offer small satellite companies the capability to launch within three months of demand into any desired orbit from Kodiak Launch Complex in Alaska or Cape Canaveral in Florida. Launch costs will range from $2 million to $3 million (£1.5 to £2.2 million).

Vector is betting on demand to grow for constellations of satellites that are 50kg or smaller, which may include a configuration of several cubesats. Right now these customers have to share rides on larger launch vehicles, and in an interview with Ars, Cantrell said the primary payload determines when and where the satellites get released in space. “It’s almost like they are children sitting at the table, to be spoken to and not heard, and to wait until the parents are gone before they can be dropped off,” Cantrell said.

Vector expects companies to be enticed by the opportunity to determine when they launch and what orbit they’re delivered to in space. The company can also offer a consistent launch interface on the same rocket every time. With that approach, Vector may be proven right. In addition to Iceye, Cantrell is in discussions with four other satellite constellation companies. “I’ll be honest, it’s going better than I ever thought,” he said. “It’s been surprising. The customer response to this vehicle has been tremendous. It’s conceivable we could have a full manifest in short order.”

More than a paper rocket

In reality, Vector is aiming to become the first mass-produced rocket company. SpaceX, on a good year, now launches a dozen times per year. It is seeking to double that total in 2017 or 2018 with its much larger Falcon 9 rocket. But with this much smaller, 13-meter-long rocket that can fit inside a semi-trailer, Vector believes it can increase the sale of launch much further. Instead of clearing millions of dollars per launch from a few launches a year, the company intends to make money by flying a lot. “The economics are different with the micromarket,” Cantrell said. “We’re looking at creating a fundamentally different business proposition than anyone else is looking at.”

Vector remains on track for its first orbital launch in 2018, Cantrell said, and the company aims to increase the launch cadence to about 100 vehicles per year by 2020 or 2021. Perhaps the biggest issue is range constraints—making sure the company has clearance from launch site officials. While Vector may do some launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, it will primarily operate from Alaska, which has a much less crowded range. That works out well, Cantrell said, because many of the polar orbits desired by customers are easier to reach from northern latitude launch sites.

For now, those remain big dreams. A contract from Iceye may validate Vector’s business plan and technical ideas for the Wolverine rocket, but Vector must still grow its small test rocket into the full-size model, and it must fly from 5,000 feet all the way into space. “The first thing we have to do is show the world we’re not a paper rocket,” Cantrell acknowledged.

Listing image by Vector Space Systems