4 ms·

Non-Profit to Launch Human Into Space Using €50,000 Spaceship

68 points by NathanKP 16y ago

gojomo 16y ago
Outbound: €50 000 Return: €10 000 000
- wtallis 16y ago
  Given that it's suborbital velocities they're aiming for, the return trip is free. (And making it safe is pretty cheap, because there's not much energy to dissipate. The horizontal motion at reentry will be small, as opposed to several times the speed of sound for the space shuttle.)
NathanKP 16y ago
The first test flight, with a crash dummy instead of a human, goes up in eight days, off a floating platform that will be towed into place using a submarine built as the group's previous project. The members of the group met each other on Something Awful. There is more info on the group's Wikipedia Page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_suborbitals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_suborbitals
jacquesm 16y ago
Lots of interesting detail on this page: http://www.copenhagensuborbitals.com/boosters.php http://www.copenhagensuborbitals.com/boosters.php
mixmax 16y ago
These guys are friends of mine. Before the rocket they built the worlds largest homemade submarine. Homepage:http://www.uc3nautilus.dk/ http://www.uc3nautilus.dk/ Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC3_Nautilus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC3_Nautilus Images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hobonerd/sets/72157604823470166/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/hobonerd/sets/72157604823470166...
- jacquesm 16y ago
  It's hard to decide which is the more impressive achievement. These guys are amazing.
spazz 16y ago
The thought of going into space on something built in a shed has a definite appeal..
- NathanKP 16y ago
  It is like the old sci-fi stories from the 1950's, when writers expected that in 2000 space travel would be as common as airplane flight. I think that more private, low budget efforts such as this one could drive expanded space travel development. So far only huge commercial companies with billions of dollars have attempted such as thing, but that could change with projects such as this one. On the website it says that they plan to release as much of their designs as are allowed under export rules. It would be nice to see more home-brew projects. The danger of course, is that if this space launch fails and somebody dies it could be a Hindenburg for private, low budget space rockets.
66-75-63-6b 16y ago
I'd like to note the freakin' awesome submarine that is also in the picture. Judging from other comments, I guess that's the homemade submarine these guys made! Makes me feel ashamed- I have a hard time building a wooden table in my garage. :(
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
ck2 16y ago
That homemade submarine leaks (there's a youtube video and the guy says "don't worry about it") I don't think that kind of error will be so forgiving in space?

68 points by NathanKP 16y ago

gojomo 16y ago

Outbound: €50 000 Return: €10 000 000

wtallis 16y ago
Given that it's suborbital velocities they're aiming for, the return trip is free. (And making it safe is pretty cheap, because there's not much energy to dissipate. The horizontal motion at reentry will be small, as opposed to several times the speed of sound for the space shuttle.)

NathanKP 16y ago

The first test flight, with a crash dummy instead of a human, goes up in eight days, off a floating platform that will be towed into place using a submarine built as the group's previous project. The members of the group met each other on Something Awful. There is more info on the group's Wikipedia Page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_suborbitals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_suborbitals

jacquesm 16y ago

Lots of interesting detail on this page: http://www.copenhagensuborbitals.com/boosters.php http://www.copenhagensuborbitals.com/boosters.php

mixmax 16y ago

These guys are friends of mine. Before the rocket they built the worlds largest homemade submarine. Homepage:http://www.uc3nautilus.dk/ http://www.uc3nautilus.dk/ Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC3_Nautilus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC3_Nautilus Images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hobonerd/sets/72157604823470166/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/hobonerd/sets/72157604823470166...

jacquesm 16y ago
It's hard to decide which is the more impressive achievement. These guys are amazing.

spazz 16y ago

The thought of going into space on something built in a shed has a definite appeal..

NathanKP 16y ago
It is like the old sci-fi stories from the 1950's, when writers expected that in 2000 space travel would be as common as airplane flight. I think that more private, low budget efforts such as this one could drive expanded space travel development. So far only huge commercial companies with billions of dollars have attempted such as thing, but that could change with projects such as this one. On the website it says that they plan to release as much of their designs as are allowed under export rules. It would be nice to see more home-brew projects. The danger of course, is that if this space launch fails and somebody dies it could be a Hindenburg for private, low budget space rockets.

66-75-63-6b 16y ago

I'd like to note the freakin' awesome submarine that is also in the picture. Judging from other comments, I guess that's the homemade submarine these guys made! Makes me feel ashamed- I have a hard time building a wooden table in my garage. :(

deleted 16y ago

[deleted]

ck2 16y ago

That homemade submarine leaks (there's a youtube video and the guy says "don't worry about it") I don't think that kind of error will be so forgiving in space?