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Wed 23 Jul 2025
The new MachLab rocket-testing facility has opened in Scotland, aiming to support the research and development of new rocket engines capable of delivering up to one tonne of thrust.
Established by researchers from the University of Glasgow with backing from industry and the UK Space Agency (UKSA), MachLab features custom-built facilities to test rocket designs.
The facility was built in partnership with space technology experts Exotopic and is located on the site of the former RAF Machrahanish airbase near Campbeltown in south-west Scotland.
Professor Patrick Harkness at the University of Glasgow’s James Watt School said: “MachLab is ready to play a key role in the UK’s strategy to return to vertical launch, ensuring that students and researchers can access hotfire facilities in a safe and controlled environment.”
The rocket test stand in MachLab’s facility allows researchers to fire prototype rockets while they remain safely locked down and stationary.
Specialist data-collection equipment measures temperature, propellant consumption, chamber pressure and other key metrics.
The facility has already hosted an initial test-fire of new 3D-printed rocket engines that feature advanced cooling systems, designed by PhD students at the University of Glasgow.
They were designed using ToffeeX, a physics-driven generative design software platform, and built on an Aconity3D additive manufacturing machine using a high-strength aerospace alloy made from copper, chromium and zirconium.
MachLab will be available to researchers and industry globally to develop skills and test designs, including those on the University of Glasgow-led programme Rocketry Research Teaching Training.
In the future, MachLab will enable the development of rocket engines using solid, liquid and cryogenic propellants designed to carry payloads into space.
Harkness said: “MachLab will allow us to cooperate with other countries establishing or re-establishing their access to space. We have already had visitors from South Africa, and we expect to welcome partners from Australia in the near future.
“The UK is returning to vertical launch, and will be going to the stars. We are building that future here, today.”
Dr Krzysztof Bzdyk, also at the James Watt School of Engineering, said: “MachLab has been two years in the making, with all the systems required to operate a liquid bi-propellant rocket engine being created from the ground up.
“We’re excited to be ready to start making our mark in rocket research, development and teaching in Scotland.”
In January, aerospace company Orbex, headquartered in Forres in northern Scotland, announced it planned to launch the first UK-made orbital rocket from SaxaVord Spaceport in the Shetland Islands later this year.
Earlier this month, the UKSA announced it had started a £75.6m tender process to launch the first UK mission to tackle space debris.
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