Zero2infinity
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| Private S.L. | |
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Founded | Barcelona, Spain |
| Founder | Jose Mariano López-Urdiales |
| Headquarters | Barberà del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain |
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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Jose Mariano López-Urdiales CEO |
| Products | |
| Website | www |
Zero 2 Infinity is a private Spanish company that operates high-altitude balloons to provide access to near space and low Earth orbit using a balloon-borne pod and a balloon-borne launcher.
The company was founded in 2009 by aerospace engineer Jose Mariano López-Urdiales, the current CEO. It is headquartered in Barberà del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
Zero 2 Infinity has been testing high-altitude balloons and launching small payloads to high altitudes for scientific institutions and commercial firms for testing elements above most of the Earth's atmosphere. Their launch system has a significantly lower impact on the environment, an advantage over conventional systems. The company's pod named Bloon may also be used for tourism. As of late 2016, its CEO had suggested that commercial flights could take place as early as 2019.
It currently has three lines of business:
Bloostar is a launch vehicle currently in development. It is based on the rockoon concept: the first stage of the ascent is conducted by the use of a high-altitude balloon up to 30 km (19 mi), where the rocket platform is ignited and detached from the balloon to insert the payload into orbit. The launch vehicle is composed of a set of liquid fuel engines clustered as concentric reusable toroids attached to the central payload. Each toroid works as a stage during the rocket climb once it has been ignited from around 30 km (19 mi) above ground level. The stages are progressively separated of the vehicle and then recovered in Earth, similarly to conventional satellite launch with rockets.
Moreover, the use of several toroid-shaped stages results in an increased stand-off distance to the sonic line during atmospheric entry, reducing the possibility of damaging the stages because of the high temperatures reached. Another possible advantage is the capability to launch satellites with no need of folding them, as a flat-shaped vehicle is capable of fitting panel-deployed satellites right from the launch site.
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Wikipedia