This is the impressive moment of launch of a successful test flight of Starchaser's Nova vehicle. The capsule was unmanned, pending further development and testing, including a drop test with a parasail, in the USA, in the near future. Launch of the X-prize vehicle, a development of Nova, provisionally named "Thunderbird", will take place from the historic launching site of Woomera, in Australia. Such a launch could not take place in Europe due to the crowded airspace and consequent safety worries, which is also the reason why the Nova rocket, pictured above was limited to a ceiling of 5000 feet. Recently, Starchaser have announced a change of final projected design from the "Thunderbird" which, on re-examination seemed capable of orbital launch, to a smaller "Thunderstar" design, more closely aligned with the X-Prize requirement. Starchaser is not fully funded at present, though it has made steady progress with its membership club and sponsorship programme. there is a shortfall of some £2.5M to be found.

Starchaser are currently working on a re-usable sounding rocket, which will be a lot less expensive to execute, will provide a demonstration that they do have the expertise for larger projects and may also bring in some revenue if it is bought and put into service by an operator.

Click the logo below to go to the Starchaser site.