HELLO. THIS IS
TARDIGRADE ENGINEERING
Consumer grade... Industry grade... Military grade... Space grade... Tardigrade!
WE MAKE
LAUNCH VEHICLES
Eco-friendly rockets at game-changing cost.
About Us
Our mission is to make space universally accessible to all responsible actors by dramatically lowering the launch price.
TardigradeEngineering was founded by recognized professionals from aerospace, defence, and security sectors. Most our engineers come from major space tech companies, such as Yuzhnoye Design Bureau, bringing their expertise and excellence with them.
Launch Vehicle
A simple expendable launch vehicle for putting 1 ton into a 500 km SSO at the lowest possible cost with reduced environmental impact. It is especially well-suited for building large LEO constellations.
- Estimated launch cost: US$ 11M
- Propellants: kerosene, hydrogen peroxide
- Status: preliminary design complete
- A suborbital test is expected in 2023
- Maiden flight expected in late 2024
Keeping It Simple
Simple design and fewer parts means:
- Lower costs (~$3000/kg to equatorial LEO)
- Faster manufacturing and maintenance
- Fewer things to break
- Greater reliability
- Simpler manufacturing and maintenance
- Shorter wait time between launches
Making It Safe
Consider:
- Reduced risk of fire/explosion: propellants do not ignite when mixed in their storable form.
- In case of emergency, the rocket can be quickly and reliably self-destructed at no cost to performance.
- No toxic or cryogenic substances are used, reducing health hazards, potential accidents and impact on environment.
- Propellants used also have a much smaller impact to the ozone layer compared to solid fuels or nitric oxidizers.
- After payload separation all parts of the launch vehicle are de-orbited, reducing the amount of space debris.
- 2nd stage can stay in the orbit for some time after separation to allow short-duration missions with attached piggyback payload (e.g. for research or educational purposes).
Engines General Data
Design ideology:
- Non-toxic propellants: kerosene, hydrogen peroxide
- Simple and reliable design with minimum moving parts
- Suitable both for 3D printing and traditional manufacturing
Advantages:
- Safe and easy handling and launch preparation
- Can be throttled to ~50% nominal thrust
- Restartable in flight, unlimited ignitions
- 2 operation modes: monopropellant and bipropellant
Auxiliary
Left: A smaller engine intended for steering on the 2nd stage. Could be also used for propulsion of an upper stage (space tug).
- In development
- Live test expected in 2024
Demo Engine
Left: Experimental unit to test combustion and validate engine design.
- Ready for manufacturing
- Live test expected in 2022
Rocket Engines
Main
Intended for propulsion of the 1st and 2nd stages (with a vacuum nozzle).
- Preliminary design complete
- Live test expected in 2023
Vacuum Engine
2nd stage main engine
- Shares 90% of design with the main engine
- Live test expected in
Disclaimer: All information on this site is provided without any obligations or warranties as to its accuracy. All numbers are based on preliminary estimations and are subject to change without prior notice. TardigradeEngineering OÜ refuses any and all liability for damage, loss of profit, and other charges rising out of the use of the information provided on this page. In particular, TardigradeEngineering OÜ or any of its owners and employees can not be held responsible for the consequences of any action, or the lack thereof, made by a third party based on the use of the information provided. Any such consequences shall be at the sole responsibility of the respective parties.