Update for 3:30 p.m. EST: Relativity Space scrubbed the debut launch after an automated abort of Terran 1 earlier in the day. A new start date has not yet been announced.
Relativity Space’s Terran 1 rocket, the world’s first 3D-printed launch vehicle, will make its first flight today (March 8), and you can watch the action live.
The 33-meter tall Terran 1 is scheduled to lift off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida during a three-hour time window that opens at 1 p.m. EST (1800 GMT) today.
You can view the orbital test flight – dubbed “Good Luck, Have Fun,” or GLHF for short – here on Space.com, courtesy of Relativity Space, or through the company directly (opens in new tab).
Related: Relativity Space is set to launch satellite tugs on a 3D-printed rocket
GLHF is a landmark mission for Relativity Space and for space technology in general: the two-stage Terran 1 is the first rocket ever to be produced primarily using 3D printing. This first Terran 1 is about 85% 3D printed by mass, although the company intends to increase that to 95% in future vehicles.
An important goal of today’s test flight is therefore to show that the vehicle is robust enough to withstand the rigors of take-off.
“In terms of flight success, safely exiting the pad, coming out over the ocean and passing Max-Q would be a major turning point for today’s launch,” Relativity Space officials told Space.com via email. “Max-Q is the point where the vehicle’s structural stresses are highest, making it one of the most challenging phases of flight. So, passing this milestone would effectively demonstrate that 3D printed rockets are structurally viable, in addition to the already successful completion of on-site acceptance testing at our facility at these maximum loads.”
Reaching all the way to low earth orbit (LEO), they added, “would be a total home run.”
The Terran 1 won’t deploy anything even if it makes it to LEO; The rocket carries no usable payload, just a 3D-printed commemorative metal ring that weighs about 1.5 kilograms, according to EverydayAstronaut.com (opens in new tab).
Relativity Space’s first Terran-1 rocket on the pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. (Image credit: Relativity Space/Trevor Mahlmann)
California-based Relativity Space was founded in 2015 by Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone, who both worked at Blue Origin. No one was employed by SpaceX either.
The Terran 1 uses methane as the propellant and liquid oxygen as the oxidizer. It will be the first US-developed “Methalox” rocket to attempt an orbit launch, and it may be the first such vehicle to reach orbit in the world. (Zhuque-2, a Methalox rocket manufactured by Beijing-based Landspace, launched in December 2022 but failed to reach orbit.)
Powered by nine Relativity Space Aeon engines in its first stage and one in its upper stage, the consumable Terran 1 can deliver up to 2,756 pounds (1,250 kg) of LEO, according to Relativity Space (opens in new tab). But the company is developing something much bigger and more powerful.
In fact, the Terran 1 is an evolutionary step towards the Terran R, a reusable rocket designed to carry up to 20,000 kg (44,100 lbs) to LEO. The 216-foot (66-m) Terran R could make its first flight as early as next year, company officials said.
“Terran 1 is serving as a pathfinder and development platform on our journey towards production of Terran R,” Relativity Space officials said in the email to Space.com. “Terran 1 has served us exceptionally well in this capacity up until our first launch, and we expect to continue to gain additional important insights on launch day.”
Space.com writer Elizabeth Howell contributed to this story.
Mike Wall is the author of Out There (opens in new tab) (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book on the search for extraterrestrial life. Follow him on Twitter @michaelwall (opens in new tab). Follow us on Twitter @spacedotcom (opens in new tab) or Facebook (opens in new tab).