Slashdot Mirror
A Chat with Kristian von Bengtson, co-founder of Copenhagen Suborbitals (Video)
Copenhagen Suborbitals says their mission is "very simple. We are working towards launching a human being into space." That doesn't sound so simple, really, but they're approaching this gargantuan task with an intentionally simple approach: a small team, relatively unhampered by bureaucratic hassles, who are taking advantage of existing, off-the-shelf high-tech solutions when they make sense, and low-tech solutions when possible; if the parable of the Soviet space pencil hadn't worked its way into the mythology of space technology, it could have been based on the Copenhagen Suborbitals point of view. I talked with project co-founder Kristian von Bengston about the project's progress so far, as well as what the next steps are. Among those next steps: in summer 2014, the Suborbitals team plans to launch their HEAT2X lift vehicle loaded with the TDS-80 capsule; you can download the preliminary trajectory projections for both the launcher and the capsule.
We have an annual budget of app. 400.000 dollars.. so yes,, very much cheaper.. We are hitting app 1:5000 in cost so far... But bare in mind that this is not a commercial project - we are doing this for fun and to challenge ourselves.. So, we cannot be compared with SpaceX..
I felt the same way. But really it is because they are not making clear they are basically an amateur serious rocketry hobby group. More professional than just hobbyists because their goal is manned missions, but not a for profit commercial company.
That makes it a lot more cool with me. Their name and their descriptions (the English ones I mean) just make them sound too commercial without some background and explanation.
Wax on, wax off baby!