Ursa Major, a leading space propulsion startup, is expanding into the solid rocket motor market with its new product, Lynx. The company, known for its hypersonic technology and rocket engines, announced Lynx as its innovative approach to producing solid rocket motors faster and more flexibly than traditional industrial methods.
Founder and CEO Joe Laurienti explained that the company had been exploring the solid rocket motor space for about two years and received a demand signal from the Department of Defense (DoD) in summer 2021. The DoD wanted to know if Ursa Major was interested in developing solid rocket motors to equip allies and maintain a sufficient US stockpile to deter adversaries, such as China.
Ursa Major’s unique approach to producing solid rocket motors involves using Lynx, a manufacturing process that allows for quick and flexible production. Lynx uses additive manufacturing to speed up production significantly, allowing for a single 3D printer to produce up to 1,650 motors per year for smaller SRMs. This method also increases flexibility in building multiple platforms on a single machine in quick succession.
Despite entering the solid rocket motor market, Ursa Major remains committed to its space and hypersonics pursuits. According to Laurienti, some lessons learned from both the qualifications process and streamlined production line required for building SRMs could help the company’s future space endeavors.
