The Spectrum launcher, developed by German company Isar Aerospace, has lifted off from the Andøya spaceport in Norway and placed its payload into low Earth orbit. This was the rocket’s second flight; the first, carried out in 2025, managed only to clear the launch pad for 30 seconds before crashing into the sea.
Spectrum is 28 metres tall and 2 metres in diameter. It is powered by ten engines, nine on the first stage and one on the second, and is designed to carry payloads of up to 1,000 kilogrammes to low Earth orbit (LEO).
