On Saturday evening, the German space start-up Isar Aerospace launched the Spektum rocket into space from a launch site in northern Norway.
The rocket took off from the Annoya (Andøya) and placed five satellites into orbit, including Norway’s first satellite, FramSat-1, developed by the Norwegian student organisation Orbit NTNU in collaboration with Norwegian industry, according to the Norwegian broadcaster NRK.
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gar Stere described the successful launch from Andøya as “a breakthrough for Norway”.
“This is a historic day! The successful launch from Annoya marks a breakthrough for Norway. It is also the result of close cooperation between Germany and Norway,” NRK quotes him as saying.
The website notes that the ability to launch satellites into orbit from European soil “is of strategic importance for Norway and Europe. This has implications for the defence of Norway and Europe, which are increasingly dependent on satellites”.
This is Isar’s second attempt to launch a rocket into low Earth orbit. The previous attempt, a year and a half ago, ended with the rocket crashing to the ground and catching fire shortly after launch.
The Annoya spaceport, located in the Arctic, is the first operational spaceport in Europe and is capable of handling up to 30 launches a year.