An American company is working on a fully reusable rocket that could make space transport significantly cheaper and may cut launch costs from $1,000 a kilo to a few hundreds of dollars.
Washington state-based Stoke Space is aiming to achieve what no company has done – operate commercial rockets whose first and second stages are designed to return to Earth and fly again.
“Stoke Space is looking to solve mobility to space, through space and from space,” Andy Lapsa, the company’s chief executive, told The National in an interview. “The only way to reduce costs, increase flight frequency and improve availability at the same time is through fully, rapidly reusable vehicles.”
While companies such as SpaceX have made strides with partially reusable rockets, Stoke Space wants to take reusability to the next level. It intends to develop its Nova rocket system, which would function almost like a commercial aircraft, with a quick turnaround time between flights.
Pioneering a reusable second stage
The challenge of creating a reusable second stage remains one of the industry’s biggest. Stoke Space’s approach involves a liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen rocket engine and a liquid-cooled heat shield, which protects the vehicle during the intense heat and pressure of atmospheric re-entry.
Traditional methods for re-entry, such as ceramic tiles or ablative heat shields that burn away during descent, are either non-reusable or prone to damage, which adds to costs.
"The liquid-cooled heat shield enables us to go to space and come back and protect the vehicle during the very intense environments during re-entry," said Mr Lapsa.
Last year, the company tested a prototype second stage, successfully carrying out a vertical take-off and landing. The vehicle "hopped" nine metres in a 15-second flight. The test helped to demonstrate the company's engine, heat shield, software and other technology. This year, the company has carried out two tests of its new engine for its first stage.
Competitive race toward reusability
Stoke Space is not the only company racing to make fully reusable rockets a reality. SpaceX, the industry leader, is developing its Starship rocket, with both stages of the vehicle designed to return to Earth for reuse. The company has revolutionised the market with reusable first stages of its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, but second stages are still expendable.
“Fully reusable vehicles are the end state of this industry,” said Mr Lapsa. “It’s critical for the global space economy to have more than one player providing services to get to space and back.”
Full reusability could cut launch costs significantly, enabling more frequent and affordable access to space.
Progress on the horizon
Stoke Space, which was founded five years ago, has developed two high-performance rocket engines and is working on flight hardware.
The company has raised more than $180 million from venture capitalists and is quickly building the technology. Some of the companies supporting Stoke Space include Seven Seven Six, Industrious Ventures and Toyota Ventures.
Mr Lapsa declined to give a timeline for the rocket's development targets but said progress is accelerating.
“We’re moving as fast as we need to make it happen,” he said.
He visited the UAE on December 10 and 11 to explore partnership opportunities and attend the Abu Dhabi Space Debate. “The UAE has become a global hub for economic activity, and I’m blown away by everything that’s been done here,” he said. “We’re trying to see where there might be areas of alignment or interest.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
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Abu Dhabi traffic facts
Drivers in Abu Dhabi spend 10 per cent longer in congested conditions than they would on a free-flowing road
The highest volume of traffic on the roads is found between 7am and 8am on a Sunday.
Travelling before 7am on a Sunday could save up to four hours per year on a 30-minute commute.
The day was the least congestion in Abu Dhabi in 2019 was Tuesday, August 13.
The highest levels of traffic were found on Sunday, November 10.
Drivers in Abu Dhabi lost 41 hours spent in traffic jams in rush hour during 2019
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
if you go
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group H
Manchester United v Young Boys, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
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2019 ASIA CUP POTS
Pot 1
UAE, Iran, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia
Pot 2
China, Syria, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Qatar, Thailand
Pot 3
Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, India, Vietnam
Pot 4
North Korea, Philippines, Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen, Turkmenistan
The specs: McLaren 600LT
Price, base: Dh914,000
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 600hp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 620Nm @ 5,500rpm
Fuel economy 12.2.L / 100km
What is the definition of an SME?
SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Mental%20health%20support%20in%20the%20UAE
%3Cp%3E%E2%97%8F%20Estijaba%20helpline%3A%208001717%3Cbr%3E%E2%97%8F%20UAE%20Ministry%20of%20Health%20and%20Prevention%20hotline%3A%20045192519%3Cbr%3E%E2%97%8F%20UAE%20Mental%20health%20support%20line%3A%20800%204673%20(Hope)%3Cbr%3EMore%20information%20at%20hope.hw.gov.ae%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
