Mura Space and ASRI Partner to Commercialise South Africa’s Sounding Rocket Launch Facility

The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Aerospace Systems Research Institute (ASRI) and Mura Space have entered into an exclusive partnership aimed at commercialising the South African Sounding Rocket Launch Facility at the Overberg Test Range in Arniston, Western Cape. Additionally, the partnership will enable authorised suborbital test launches utilising both fixed and mobile infrastructure, in full compliance with established safety and operational standards.

According to UKZN, the collaboration is expected to enhance South Africa’s position as a hub for global aerospace research and investment. In addition to that, the partnership will support local engineering innovation, advance STEM education, and promote international knowledge exchange. Looking ahead, Mura Space has outlined a planned series of suborbital launch campaigns for 2026, with several missions targeting altitudes of up to 100 kilometres (the Kármán line). This would be an achievement that would represent a major milestone for Africa’s emerging space sector.

“By combining our advanced engineering expertise, in-house manufacturing capabilities, and 16 years of innovation with Mura’s commercial vision for launch, we are opening new frontiers for local research, skills development, and global technology exchange, noted ASRI’s Director, Professor Michael Brook.

Mura Space CEO Frederik de Ridder emphasised that the global evolution of suborbital activity has consistently laid the groundwork for orbital launch capability. He added that South Africa is now entering this phase, with collaborative efforts among national and international stakeholders expected to accelerate progress toward the country’s first commercial orbital launch.

“We hope some of these launches will offer new opportunities for select South African micro-gravity research payloads as well as contribute positively to local educational and human capital development programmes in ways previously not possible, highlighted Mura Space CEO Frederik de Ridder.

The activities will be conducted under the newly established AfriRoC™ (African Rocketry Challenge™) initiative.

Developing Africa’s Commercial Launch Capabilities

As Africa expands its ambitions in the global space economy, a key challenge remains: the lack of operational and commercially managed spaceports to support sustained launch activity. While countries such as Djibouti, Kenya, and Somalia have signalled intent from a government perspective, the continent’s full participation in the new space race depends on establishing a coherent and commercially viable launch value chain.

In response, Mura Space has emerged as a privately led initiative driving Africa’s entry into the commercial launch sector. As the only private company in Sub-Saharan Africa dedicated to building an end-to-end suborbital and orbital launch value chain, it aims to establish cost-competitive, high-frequency launch capabilities and position the continent as a base of operations for global launch providers.

A clear understanding of the evolving needs of the global launch market guides Mura Space’s work. As demand for launch services continues to grow, the next generation of spaceports must support a higher launch cadence, accommodate multiple vehicle types, and maintain readiness despite weather and air traffic constraints. Planning for the proposed Mura Spaceport™ integrates these realities while drawing lessons from international precedents to position an African facility competitively within the global space industry landscape.

The recent partnership between Mura Space and the Aerospace Systems Research Institute (ASRI) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal marks a pivotal step toward realising this vision, bringing together private-sector ambition, academic excellence, and technical expertise to advance a sustainable launch ecosystem