ENLIGHTEN-ED

The space sector is a source of economic growth, jobs and exports, contributing to all Key Strategic Orientations of the EU strategic plan. Faced with growing competition and technological disruption, it is drastically vital to act in support of European space launchers development to preserve European independent access to space. European launchers must improve their competitiveness by halving launch price in the short term. In the long term, Europe will create common building blocks for an integrated and competitive European family of launchers of all scales with reusability functionalities. The purpose of ENLIGHTEN is to develop and test advanced production means and technologies for reusable rocket engines, following on the Prometheus® ESA program, in order to create a family of reusable, high-power engines fueled by bio-methane or green hydrogen. In the continuity of ENLIGHTEN, ENLIGHTEN-ED aims at maturate enabling technologies, subsystems, tools and processes by bringing them to TRL5/6. Then, ENLIGHTEN-ED will demonstrate the above technologies by engine on-ground demonstration tests by 2026 to reach TRL7. In the frame of ENLIGHTEN-ED, a tailored consortium (including major aerospace actors, SME, RTO and an university) will prepare a demonstrator of green high thrust engine (GTHE) based on liquid hydrogen using: - The latest advances in additive manufacturing to reduce the cost and number of engine parts, - Artificial Intelligence and machine learning to develop the first space engine health Monitoring System in Europe necessary to implement reusability, - New ultra-low-cost subsystems as engine ignition system, nozzle extension, electric valves and multi-functional lines. Therefore, ENLIGHTEN-ED will demonstrate the ability of such an ultra-low-cost engine to be rapidly operational and available for all European launcher families and thus strive to increase the competitiveness of European GTHE.