U.S. News

First 3D-Printed Rocket Launch Didn’t Quite Go to Plan

BLAST

The rocket successfully launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida—then things went awry.

Relativity Space's 3D-printed rocket Terran 1 sits on the launch pad in this handout photograph released ahead of its scheduled launch in Cape Canaveral, Florida, March 8, 2023.
Trevor Mahlmann/Relativity Space via Reuters

The world’s first 3D-printed rocket failed to reach orbit Wednesday night after developing a technical problem shortly after liftoff. The demonstration flight from Relativity Space’s Terran 1 rocket—which was not carrying any people—would also have been the first rocket to reach orbit using liquid methane fuel if it had been...

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