Maine rocket company wants to use a Down East island for its next launch

Maine-based rocket company bluShift Aerospace said it has located an island launch site for its planned, larger rockets.

BluShift successfully launched its first rocket in January from the former Loring Air Force Base in northern Maine. But that rocket, named Red Dawn, only climbed about a mile high before its booster and payload parachuted back to the ground, still within the boundaries of the former air force base.

BluShift’s planned second rocket, called Starless Rogue, is to travel at least 62 miles high, to the edge of space on a suborbital flight. For safety reasons, that required a launch over water.

At an online investor conference Wednesday, bluShift Chief Executive Officer Sascha Deri, said he’s found an island off the coast of Washington County. He said the property’s owner, and local officials, who Deri wasn’t yet ready to name, have been very enthusiastic and “welcoming,” about the prospect of hosting the launch site.

Read more: https://bangordailynews.com/2021/10/07/news/down-east/maine-rocket-company-wants-to-use-a-down-east-island-for-its-next-launch/