The Atlantic Spaceport Consortium (ASC), have signed a contract with SpaceForest, a technology company developing a suborbital flight service using its Perun rocket system.
The contract now signed is supported by the Portuguese Space Agency and the European Space Agency (ESA), under their Space Transportation Boost! initiative, and is expected to culminate the launch of a Perun rocket in Spring 2026.
Based in Poland, SpaceForest is developing a new commercial single-stage European sounding rocket that offers nearly four minutes of microgravity experimentation time. The 11.5-m tall rocket will be able to launch payloads of up to 50 kg to an altitude of 150 km while also stabilising the payload for high-quality microgravity periods of flight. Perun uses a hybrid propulsion system consisting of nitrous oxide as the oxidizer and modified paraffin, commonly used as candle wax, as the fuel – resulting in a non-toxic propellant.
The service concept that SpaceForest is developing, which enables the Perun rocket to be launched from a mobile launch pad, is a perfect fit for Santa Maria and its current maturity stage as a spaceport. Under this contract, ASC will support SpaceForest in obtaining the required regulatory approvals and launch licenses and provide operational support on the island, including recovery of the launcher and its payload from the ocean.
Read the full press release in English here:
https://spaceport.pt/press/ASC-2025-PR-0702-SpaceForestBoost-EN-V1.1-EN.pdf
Read the full press release in Portuguese here:
https://spaceport.pt/press/ASC-2025-PR-0701-SpaceForestBoost-PT-V1.0.pdf
Malbusca site:
https://spaceport.pt/press/SpaceForestCCN-media/Launch-site-Malbusca-2.JPG
(image credit: ASC)
Perun rocket test at Ustka:
https://spaceport.pt/press/SpaceForestCCN-media/20230214_SpaceForest_test_Ustka-1024×683.jpg
(image credit: SpaceForest)
