EPFL Rocket Team

17/10/2026

Day 3 of EuRoC

🚀Main Sponsors: EPFL, APCO Technologies,
Constellium, Linde, Kistler Group
🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland,
Schoeller-Bleckmann Precision Technology

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16/10/2026

Day 2 🚀

Back in the paddocks getting ready for tomorrow’s FRR and meeting Neil deGrasse Tyson

See you tomorrow morning for our Flight readiness review

🚀Main Sponsors: EPFL, APCO Technologies,
Constellium, Linde, Kistler Group
🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland,
Schoeller-Bleckmann Precision Technology

📷 photographer: 01101010peg

16/10/2026

03/10/2026

🚀 The reveal of Firehorn 2 is here! 🚀
Last Monday, we finally revealed our Firehorn 2 rocket to you! It was amazing to share this special moment with our colleagues, friends, and dearest sponsors.

We were honored to welcome EPFL president: Anna Fontcuberta i Morrall, EPFL Space Center - eSpace Executive Director: Emmanuelle David and APCO Technologies’ Principal Engineer Flight Hardware: Mélanie Bordes, alongside our team, for this important milestone.

We took the opportunity to look back on our journey: how we conceived and developed this rocket, the challenges and failures we faced along the way, and, of course, the wins that made it all worthwhile.

An enormous amount of time, dedication, and sacrifices were made to bring this rocket to life. But this achievement would not have been possible without the incredible support we received from our sponsors, partners, and everyone who believed in us throughout this journey. Thank you for being part of this adventure! ❤️

It has been an absolute honor to present Firehorn 2 to you. We can’t wait to see you at EuRoC 2026! 🚀
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🚀 Main Sponsors: EPFL, APCO Technologies, Constellium, Linde, Kistler Group
🥇 Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland, SBO

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07/06/2026

🚀 As the semester comes to an end, we want to take a moment to look back and say thank you. 🚀

This has been one incredible semester for EPFL Rocket Team. Between classes, exams, and late nights at the TF, our members pulled off some truly remarkable things:

🔥 The static fire test campaign of B3: watching our new engine ignite six times in a row is something none of us will forget

🏁 A successful Space Race edition, where first year students got to launch their rockets for the very first time. That same day in Payerne, we also launched our test rocket Bächi, allowing us to test the flight computer, payload cameras, separation mechanism and parachute unreefing in real flight conditions. A key milestone for the competition project!

🪂 A recovery drop test from a hot air balloon that allowed us to qualify the opening and unreefing of the parachute under load conditions

🛸 Participation in several space-related forums, representing EPFL and the next generation of aerospace engineers

None of this happens without the people behind it. Every subsystem, every late shift, every “let’s just try one more time” is what makes this team what it is.

To every single member of this Rocket Team: thank you. Go crush your exams, get some rest, and we’ll see you on the other side. 🙏



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02/06/2026

🚀 A few words of our new president 🚀

« I am honoured to have been elected President of the EPFL Rocket Team for the 2026–2027 academic year.
Three years ago, I joined the association as a member of the Testing Facility team. Since then, I have had the opportunity to contribute to one of the most exciting projects of the team: the development and construction of our Testing Facility, which remains one of the most rewarding experiences of my time at ERT.

Over the past two years, I have served as Chief Safety Officer and member of the Executive Committee. This role has allowed me to work closely with every department of the association, contribute to the development of our safety culture, support major technical projects and help prepare the team for increasingly ambitious objectives.

Beyond the technical aspects, these years have taught me invaluable lessons about leadership, teamwork, project management, and the importance of building an environment where students can learn, grow, and take on challenges that often seem impossible at first.

I would like to sincerely thank all members of the EPFL Rocket Team for their trust and support. It is a privilege to lead such a talented and motivated group of students.

I am excited to work alongside our members, partners, alumni, and supporters as we continue to push our projects further and write the next chapter of the EPFL Rocket Team.

The journey continues. »

Jeremy Jariod

🔥Main Sponsors: , APCO Technologies, , , Kistler Group

🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland

01/06/2026

🚀 Recovery Drop Test 🚀

A few days ago, we successfully conducted a major drop test of our main parachute.

The parachute was deployed from a hot-air balloon at 500 m and unreefed nominally at 100 m, exactly as expected. This test marks a major milestone for Firehorn’s Recovery System and validates the design choices we have been refining over the past year ! 🪂

This result is the outcome of a full year of improvements, iterations, and problem-solving on the recovery system. Seeing it perform flawlessly in real conditions is incredibly rewarding for the whole team and represents a key step forward as we move closer to launch.

A massive thank you to for sponsoring the flight and making this test possible. It is always a pleasure to see the Swiss flag from your balloon.
On to the next challenges, step by step, we’re getting ready for launch! 🚀

🔥Main Sponsors: , APCO Technologies, , , Kistler Group

🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland

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27/05/2026

🚀 B3 Static Fire Test 1 🚀

A few days ago we got to do the very first static fire test of our B3 liquid engine, developed to propel the Firehorn 2 rocket on its targeted 3 km launch in late 2026.

The test was conducted at our in-house cryogenic testing facility, where the engine successfully achieved 6.1 kN of peak thrust during a 1.5-second burn. 🎆
The test success criteria were achieved, demonstrating capability to ignite the B3 Helios chamber safely.

During ignition, a carefully timed sequence unfolds: a valve open to cool the oxidizer injector, a pyrotechnic igniter is triggered, the main valves open quickly resulting in an instant ramp up to full thrust, followed by a fuel-rich cut-off.

Clear Mach diamonds are visible in the exhaust plume. Additionally, the flame haze observed further downstream results from the film cooling combustion.

The propulsion team will now conduct more test to push the chamber to higher thrust and longer burns. 🔥🔥

🔥Main Sponsors: , APCO Technologies, , , Kistler Group

🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland

📸 : .by.tea, ,

18/05/2026

🚀 Space Race Flight Readiness Review 🚀

Two weeks ago, all of the teams involved in the Space Race project, our educational program, went through their Flight Readiness Review (FRR).

After months of hard work designing, building and testing their rockets, each team finally presented its full system before getting ready for launch ! From structures and payloads to avionics and recovery, every group showed the incredible progress they made throughout the year !📈

Some Competition Team Leader and the System Engineer also joined the review to share their feedback and technical insights on the rockets and payloads.

Beyond the technical side, these reviews were also a great moment to see how much the teams have evolved, despite the difficulties encountered. They learned to work together, to solve problems, to adapt, and to push their projects forward step by step.

It’s launching tiiiime !! 🚀 We can’t wait to see their rocket fly !

🔥Main Sponsors: , APCO Technologies, , , Kistler Group

🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland

📸 : .by.tea

12/05/2026

🚀 Easter Meetings 2026 🚀

A few weeks ago we held our annual Easter Meetings, where we discussed about the future of the different projects. We are very excited to say that the EPFL Rocket Team is still aiming for space with biliquid. 🚀
From now on, we will distinguish between our competition project and the SpaceShot project.

As for the different projects, here is a quick summary of the decisions made.

Competition :
The competition program remains at the heart of the association’s activities : designing, building, testing and launching a rocket every year.

SpaceShot :
A dedicated team will be working on the feasibility of the project, defining milestones, identifying technical challenges, and preparing the first preliminary designs.

Icarus :
The project will continue for another year. Icarus has made a major progress and is getting closer to becoming operational thanks to a highly committed team.

Plasma :
The project is reaching its conclusion within the team. It’s final highlight will be flying as the payload of Firehorn II at EuRoC this October.

Space Race :
The educational project will continue in its current format, continuing to bring us motivated members every year.

A huge thank you to everyone who was there ! We’re there only thanks to the commitment of our members.

We can’t wait to reach space ! 🚀✨

🔥Main Sponsors: , APCO Technologies, , , Kistler Group

🥇Gold Sponsors: , Swagelok Switzerland

📸 : & .by.tea