Project Nixus

Project Nixus experienced both major technical milestones and a successful competition launch year. Early in the year, the team completed the redesign of its additively manufactured injector head, combining previously separate components into a single lightweight, high-performance part. Cold-flow and hot-fire tests at TUM’s facilities validated both performance and structural integrity, while also serving as a valuable training opportunity for new members.

Throughout the summer, the EX-4C rocket entered full system integration. Avionics health checks, subsystem interface verification, and extensive ground infrastructure testing, including fueling stations and our self-built launch rail, ensured readiness for competition.

In October, Nixus competed at the European Rocketry Challenge (EuRoC) 2025. After passing the Flight Readiness Review without issues, the team faced tight schedules, challenging wind conditions, and a valve failure in the fueling system. Through persistence and careful operational decisions, EX-4C successfully lifted off on the final launch day. Although a pressurization issue limited thrust and resulted in a reduced apogee of 1.48 km, the flight remained fully controlled, and the recovery system performed nominally.

With only 13 of 28 teams achieving lift-off at EuRoC 2025, the successful launch stands as a significant accomplishment and a testament to the robustness of the system and the team’s dedication. After EuRoC, the team immediately started with testing of the newly developed electric pumps, and finished several successful test campaigns until mid-December, putting itself in a good starting position for the expected launch of the pump-fed vehicle in 2026

Project WESP (WARR Experimental Solid Platform)

2025 was a defining year for Project WESP. It began with the launch campaign of EX-1Evo at IREC 2025, where the team demonstrated a novel and highly optimized fin section design. Despite challenging circumstances, including a storm-damaged launch site and last-minute schedule changes, the team successfully adapted and ultimately launched as the first rocket of the competition.

The booster stage performed entirely nominally, staging occurred as planned, and the sustainer accelerated nominally, reaching Mach 2.5, making EX-1Evo the fastest rocket in WARR’s history. Shortly before sustainer burnout, the vehicle experienced a failure most likely caused by a sudden increase in angle of attack, leading to vehicle disintegration. While the loss of the sustainer was disappointing, the campaign was an extraordinary technical success: MaxQ was passed without structural failure, critical design limits were explored, and extensive recovery operations yielded valuable data and insights. Following IREC, the team transitioned into its third season with a clear objective: a mission exceeding 100 km altitude, and thereby becoming the first European student rocketry team reaching space. This step represents a fundamental shift, requiring in-house solid rocket motor development and a complete redesign of avionics, structures, recovery systems, and mission architecture. Throughout autumn, WESP completed its System Concept Review, initiated first component designs, and prepared for the Preliminary Design Review in December, while simultaneously planning initial hot-fire tests of newly developed solid motors.

Project Retrofire

2025 marked the establishment and rapid growth of Project Retrofire, WARR’s new rocket lander initiative aiming for autonomous propulsive landing in the Collegiate Propulsive Lander Challenge (CPLC). The project successfully passed its Mission Concept and Definition Review (MCR & MDR), System Requirements Review (SRR) laying a strong foundation in systems engineering from the outset.

The team expanded significantly and integrated fully into WARR Rocketry’s organizational and development structure. It also progressed swiftly into the detailed design phase with some subsystems already having passed their Preliminary Design Review (PDR). Significant developments included the sizing of the throttleable thrust chamber, the design of throttle valves, thrust vector control systems, reaction control systems for roll stabilization, and the first structural Design of the lander.

Parallel to the design efforts, the Controls team advanced high-fidelity simulations and prepared a subscale test vehicle, the E-Hopper, which conducted its first tethered test flight in late December.

We want to wish you a great start in the year 2026!

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Gravimeeting Conference

In March we were invited to the Gravimeeting in Erlangen, a yearly conference for German Gravitational Biology supported by the DLR. There we got to present our project ADDONISS, that launched to the ISS in 2023 and was co-funded by the DLR through the “Überflieger 2” competition. It was a great opportunity to scout the latest research developments and talk to experts. There we got the inspiration for our new focus project: D.I.N.O.labs.

New Mission D.I.N.O.labs

Dinoflagellates: Investigation of Noctilucent Organisms (D.I.N.O.labs) aims to analyze the behavior of bioluminescent algae in altered gravity environments, such as those experienced during rocket launches. Bioluminescent algae like Pyrocystis Noctiluca are sensitive to shear forces on their membranes and exhibit a blue light upon mechanical stimulation. This makes them a valuable biomarker for shear forces and offers unique opportunities to study the effects of microgravity and high-gravity phases on biological systems.

D.I.N.O.labs V1 at Spaceport America Cup – Honorable mention
After just three months of development, we achieved our first milestone with our first launch at the Spaceport America Cup. D.I.N.O.labs V1 flew on board WARR Rocketry‘s EX-1E rocket WESP which performed a beautiful two staged launch in the New Mexico desert, USA.
To combat the intense heat we designed a water cooling system that utilized ice water to cool the the payload on the launch pad. Encased in a 3U housing (10x10x30cm^3) weighing 4kg, as per competition regulations, we flew 2 samples of bioluminescent algae. The cooling system successfully maintained a stable environment of 23°C for the algae, protecting them from the harsh launch conditions. However, the system proofed to be rather unwieldy during handling, prompting the development of an updated thermal system for our second launch later in the year in Portugal.
As a highlight of this first chapter of D.I.N.O.labs, we won an honorable mention for “Most Professionally Integrated Payload”, which is a huge tribute to the experience we gathered during the last two years in terms of payload design, construction, and operations.

D.I.N.O.labs V2 at EuRoC – Payload Award
The second launch followed shortly after, taking place in October at EuRoC in Portugal. D.I.N.O.labs V2 was carried aboard WARR Rocketry’s EX-4B rocket, Nixus. Building on the lessons learned from V1, where our cameras failed to capture satisfactory signals during the SAC launch, we upgraded to improved sensors. This allowed us to repurpose the freed space from the cameras and the new air cooling system to accommodate more algae samples.
With this enhancement, the payload carried a total of 8 samples, each trained to be active during different time windows during the day to ensure active samples during the eventual launch. Despite the rocket having to recover with only the drogue parachute because of strong winds on the launch day, the payload survived the touchdown with only a minor battle mark – a small warp in the housing – and was fully functional upon recovery.
Our hard work of the previous months was honored when we were awarded the EuRoC Payload Award. This completed the triple win for WARR, bringing home three EuRoC awards this year: the L3 Flight Award, the Team Award and the Payload Award.

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