Longtime Slashdot reader Destinyland shares a Space.com report: The Relativity Space rocket, named Terran 1, lifted off from Launch Complex 16 at Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 8:25 p.m. EST (0025 GMT March 23), beginning a test flight called “Good Luck, Have Fun” (GLHF). Terran 1 performed well initially. For example, it survived Max-Q, the part of flight during which structural loads are highest on a rocket, and its first and second stages successfully separated. But something went wrong shortly after, about three minutes into the flight, when the rocket failed to reach orbit.
“Nobody has ever tried to launch a 3D-printed rocket into orbit, and while we didn’t go all the way today, we’ve collected enough data to show that flying 3D-printed rockets is viable,” said Arwa Tizani Kelly from Relativity Space. he said during the company’s launch webcast Wednesday night. “We have just completed an important step in showing the world that 3D printed rockets are structurally viable,” he added.
