Honda gears up for space race; test-fires reusable rocket engine prototype

Japanese automobile giant Honda is gearing up for the space race as it recently test-fired a prototype engine meant for usable rockets. The test was reportedly conducted in closed curtains and reports about it emerged after Honda representatives shared a video in a Zoom call with the press on October 28. This is being considered a rapid development as just in late September, the company unveiled its plan to develop a reusable launch vehicle for small satellites, although Honda has been working on the project since late 2019. 

According to Space.com, Atsushi Ogawa, operating officer for innovative research excellence at Honda R&D, had said in the virtual call, "We believe that we have made huge progress in this development after only two years. At Honda, we're going to accelerate our R&D in the field of space, which we view as a place to take on challenges to realize the dreams and potential of people worldwide while leveraging our core technologies". 

Honda's quest to space

The latest development comes after Honda had announced on September 30, that it is investing in technologies meant for the development of satellite launch vehicles under its 'Vision 2030'. A report by Space News suggested, that Honda is also intending to expand its portfolio to electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, also known as flying cars, multi-fingered avatar robots and even energy production units on the Moon. 

The Tokyo-based company says that it will be ready with its reusable rockets for test launches by 2030 and also with the robots, although the latter's technology demonstrations are estimated to begin by 2024. According to Space News, Honda has pledged to commit $45 billion towards research and development in the next years but hasn't disclosed how much it will spend in the space sector. Multiple media sources reported, that although the specifications of Honda's rocket are unknown yet, it has been known that the launch vehicles would use liquid propellants for fuel and will be able to carry satellites weighing less than one ton. 

In its quest to space, Honda partnered with the European Space Agency (ESA) in June this year, for developing a renewable energy-producing unit that will deploy the former's technologies to support lunar rovers and human outposts on the Moon. 

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