Microlauncher design, cost estimation and technology roadmaps

This paper describes the methodology developed at Politecnico di Torino to support the European Space Agency in the Micro-launchers design activity and to complement the traditional conceptual design with a multidisciplinary set of analyses which includes a thorough assessment of the economic and technological viability of the solution. The paper briefly describes the logic laying behind each of these analyses and it shows the results of the validation of the integrated design methodology, called iDREAM, with an already existing case study, the Electron Micro-launcher. The results are satisfactory and reveals errors lower than 10% in average, perfectly in line with the expectations of a conceptual design phase.