NordSpace is once again hoping to make history on Newfoundland’s south coast with Canada’s first-ever commercial rocket launch.
The company is making a renewed attempt to launch its single-engine rocket, Taiga, in St. Lawrence. It’s a six-metre tall rocket created using 3D-printed metal.
The launch will be live streamed.
NordSpace attempts first-Canadian commercial rocket launch
In a statement on its website, NordSpace said both the pad and rocket are launch-ready.
Wednesday’s launch window opens at 6:30 a.m. NT with conditions expected to be most favourable starting at approximately 09:00 NDT today.
However, the company’s statement says the launch may occur sooner and on short notice, as all systems will be in a launch-ready state.
NordSpace made two attempts on Tuesday to launch its rocket. The first had to be called off because a small boat appeared in the ocean near the launch area.
When it was cleared for another attempt, the mission was a go for launch until about 30 seconds before the timer reached zero earlier on Tuesday morning. Smoke and fire became visible near the bottom of the rocket, forcing a pause on the mission.
NordSpace CEO Rahul Goel said the flames came from residual propellant on the launch pad, and that a fire in that manner isn’t uncommon on rocket launches.
NordSpace attempted several launches in late August, and was 58 seconds away from takeoff when an ignition issue occurred and the mission was scrubbed.
The launch — when it does happen — will be suborbital, meaning the rocket won’t orbit Earth and will only be in the air for about a minute before it splashes into the Atlantic Ocean.
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