Seattle-based Radian Aerospace says it’s developing a reusable re-entry vehicle that can be used to test aerospace components under stressful conditions and then bring them back down to Earth.
The Radian Reusable Re-entry Vehicle, or R3V, is meant to advance technologies that the company is building into Radian One, its single-stage-to-orbit spaceplane.
Radian says the insights gained from R3V’s uncrewed test flights will inform critical elements of the Radian One mission platform, including aerodynamic performance, guidance and control, and the operability of subsystems such as propulsion and thermal protection.
For example, R3V will use Dur-E-Therm, a thermal protection material that Radian invented to withstand the stresses of atmospheric re-entry at hypersonic speeds.
R3V is under development in the Seattle area and could be ready for its first flight by early 2026, Radian says. In addition to blazing a trail for the spaceplane, R3V is expected to generate near-term revenue.
