German company launches rocket as Europe enters satellite race

Isar Aerospace says its 28-metre-long Spectrum rocket blasted off into space from Andøya spaceport in Arctic Norway.

Germany's Isar Aerospace lauches a rocket into space from Arctic Norway on September 5, 2026 [Isar Aerospace/Franziska Kegel/Handout via Reuters]

Germany’s Isar Aerospace has launched a rocket into orbit from Norway as Europe aims to boost its ability to independently send satellites into space.

The 28-metre-long (92 ft) Spectrum rocket blasted off into space at 10:12pm (20:12 GMT) on Saturday from the Andøya spaceport in Arctic Norway, Isar Aerospace said.

The uncrewed rocket carried five satellites that were deployed while in orbit, the German start-up said , adding that “spacecraft separation was completed successfully” after satellite deployment.

The Spectrum rocket reached an altitude of 100km (62 miles) above Earth’s surface in less than four minutes, presenters said during a live broadcast of the rocket’s takeoff.

This is the first time a privately developed rocket has reached space from Europe, the company announced in a post on X.

Isar Aerospace launched its first test flight in March 2022, but the rocket plunged into the sea and exploded 30 seconds after takeoff. The second launch was scheduled for January but postponed several times.

Europe is largely unable to launch satellites and has faced setbacks in sending rockets into orbit with its own technology after cutting ties with Russia’s Soyuz rockets. Most European satellites have been launched by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which operates out of the United States.

Western Europe’s first attempt to launch a satellite using billionaire Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit failed to reach orbit after an “anomaly” was reported in January 2023.

The US launched 198 rockets last year, while Europe launched just eight, according to Isar Aerospace. The German company seeks to build capacity to manufacture up to 40 launch vehicles per year.

Europe is betting on a new generation of small commercial launchers in early development to launch satellites more cheaply in the future.

The space company announced in August that it had signed a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA), securing $230m to accelerate the development of launch vehicles and expand launch infrastructure.

“This milestone kicks off the European Launcher Challenge, encouraging competition among European launch providers,” ESA director of space transportation Géraldine Naja said in a statement published by the German start-up at the time.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited Isar Aerospace’s launch site with Norway’s prime minister in March and reiterated Europe’s concerns about its dependence on the US, including in space launch capabilities.

Isar Aerospace公司表示，其28米长的Spectrum火箭已从挪威北极地区的安德亚航天中心发射升空。

2026年9月5日，德国伊萨尔航天公司从挪威北极地区发射一枚火箭进入太空。[伊萨尔航天公司/弗朗齐斯卡·凯格尔/路透社供图]

德国伊萨尔航天公司从挪威发射了一枚火箭进入轨道，欧洲的目标是提高其独立向太空发射卫星的能力。

据挪威伊萨尔航空航天公司称，长 28 米（92 英尺）的 Spectrum 火箭于周六晚上 10 点 12 分（格林尼治标准时间 20 点 12 分）从挪威北极地区的安德亚航天中心发射升空。

这家德国初创公司表示，无人火箭携带了五颗卫星，这些卫星在轨道上部署完毕。该公司还补充说，卫星部署后，“航天器分离已成功完成”。

主持人直播火箭发射时表示，光谱火箭在不到四分钟的时间内达到了地球表面上方 100 公里（62 英里）的高度。

该公司在 X 上发帖宣布，这是欧洲私人开发的火箭首次进入太空。

伊萨尔航天公司于2022年3月进行了首次试飞，但火箭在起飞30秒后坠入海中爆炸。第二次发射原定于1月进行，但多次推迟。

欧洲基本上不具备发射卫星的能力，在与俄罗斯联盟号火箭断绝关系后，利用自身技术将火箭送入轨道也遭遇了挫折。目前，大多数欧洲卫星都是由埃隆·马斯克的SpaceX公司发射的，该公司总部位于美国。

2023 年 1 月，西欧首次尝试使用亿万富翁理查德·布兰森的维珍轨道公司发射卫星，但卫星在发射过程中出现“异常”后未能进入轨道。

据德国伊萨尔航空航天公司（Isar Aerospace）的数据显示，去年美国发射了198枚火箭，而欧洲仅发射了8枚。这家德国公司正寻求将产能提升至每年40枚运载火箭。

欧洲寄希望于尚处于早期研发阶段的新一代小型商用运载火箭，以便未来以更低的成本发射卫星。

这家航天公司在 8 月份宣布，已与欧洲航天局 (ESA) 签署合同，获得 2.3 亿美元，用于加速运载火箭的研发和扩大发射基础设施。

“这一里程碑标志着欧洲运载火箭挑战赛的启动，鼓励欧洲运载火箭供应商之间的竞争，”欧洲航天局空间运输主管杰拉尔丁·纳贾当时在一份由这家德国初创公司发布的声明中表示。

德国总理弗里德里希·默茨于3月与挪威首相一同参观了伊萨尔航天公司的发射场，并重申了欧洲对自身在太空发射能力等方面对美国的依赖的担忧。