Function Orbital launch vehicle Diameter 1.5 m Engines 1 Solid Payload to LEO 200 kg Stages 3 | Country of origin Brazil First flight 2018 (planned) Specific impulse ~277 s (2.72 kN·s/kg) Status In development | |
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Manufacturer Department of Aerospace Science and Technology Launch sites Centro de Lançamento de Alcântara Similar SPARK, LauncherOne, Falcon 9 Full Thrust, Satélite de Coleta de Dados, KSLV‑2 | ||
The VLM (Veículo Lançador de Microssatélites) is a proposed Brazilian satellite launcher. The project originated as a simplified version of the VLS-1 rocket, using only the core stages.
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Currently, a version based on the S50 rocket engine is being studied, with the objective of orbiting satellites up to 150 kg in circular orbits ranging from 250 to 700 km.
It will be a three-stage rocket, expected to launch the SHEFEX III mission by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in 2016.
On 12 June 2015, it was reported that the first flight will not take place before November 2018.
Proposed flights
Engine test on a test stand is planned for the beginning of 2017. First flight of a single S50 stage, called VS-50 is planned for November 2017. The qualification flight is VLM XVT-00.
Original VLS-1 derived
Initially, a four solid fuel rocket stages configuration was proposed, arranged in the following order:
This configuration is related to the proposed VS-43 sounding rocket.
Current proposal (VLM-1)
Currently, the first two stages will use the new S50 12 tonnes solid fuel engine, with the third using the same S-44 engine as in the VS-40 sounding rocket. This configuration is related to the proposed VS-50 sounding rocket and known as VLM-1:
Planned versions
In the future, the L5 liquid fuel rocket engine will replace the solid 3rd stage engine: