astronomy

Haas (rocket)

Haas (rocket) is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Haas (rocket) rather than just read about it. In short: Haas was a family of rocket space launchers developed by ARCAspace for the Google Lunar X Prize competition and for their national crewed space program. As of 2026 no rocket has been launched, the planned rocket types have changed significantly over time.

Key takeaways

Haas (rocket) belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Haas (rocket) to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Haas (rocket) from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Haas was a family of rocket space launchers developed by ARCAspace for the Google Lunar X Prize competition and for their national crewed space program. As of 2026 no rocket has been launched, the planned rocket types have changed significantly over time. It was named after Conrad Haas, a rocket pioneer who lived and worked in what is now Romania, and was the first European to describe a multistage rocket in writing.

Haas Haas was a Romanian carrier rocket, which was developed by ARCA as part of the ELE programme. It was designed to be air-launched from a high-altitude balloon, similar to the American Rockoon experiments of the 1950s. Prior to the development of Haas, ARCA had already launched two Stabilo rockets from balloons. It was powered by hybrid rocket motor, using hydrogen peroxide as oxidizer and bitumen as solid fuel. The Haas rocket was to be a three-stage rocket intended to be capable of placing 400 kilograms of payload into low Earth orbit. Its maiden flight was to carry the European Lunar Explorer spacecraft, ARCA's entry into the Google Lunar X-Prize, following a series of engine tests which began in 2009. It was abandoned when ARCA decided to stop using solar and helium balloons for their space program.

Haas 2

Haas 2 was an orbital two-stage launcher design intended to be carried under the fuselage of the IAR 111 supersonic plane. It was planned to be powered by the new Executor liquid-fueled rocket engine under development at ARCA. Its intended launch altitude was approximately 17,000 m (56,000 ft). It was intended to place a 400 kg (880 lb) payload into low Earth orbit.

Haas 2CA

Haas 2CA, previously Haas 2c, was a planned flight testing platform for the Executor engine. It was an intended single-stage-to-orbit vehicle due to its lightweight fuel tanks and was originally planned for a 2018 launch.

Data from General characteristics Length: 16 m (52 ft 6 in) Diameter: 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) Max takeoff weight: 16,300 kg (35,935 lb) Lift-off thrust: 22,900 kgf (225 kN; 50,000 lbf) Payload to LEO: 100 kg (220 lb)

2020 plans ARCAspace changed the plans of future rockets over time. In March 2020, the company announced its plans to develop ground-launched single-stage-to-orbit rockets which could optionally increase their payload with a booster stage (called Launch assist system, LAS). It was planned to test two stages of a small orbital rocket (LAS 25R and Haas mini) in independent flights in 2020, before the two would have combined for a first orbital flight in 2021. This two-stage rocket was planned to have a payload capacity of 40 kg to low Earth orbit. A larger first stage was expected for 2022, followed by a single-stage-to-orbit rocket Haas 3 in 2023, carrying up to 500 kg of payload. Combining both, ARCAspace expected to achieve a payload capacity of 3 tonnes in 2024. This sequence would have repeated with even larger rocket stages, leading to a 60 tonne payload rocket in 2027.

See also Aerobee Pegasus Comparison of orbital launchers families

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Haas (rocket)

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Haas (rocket) claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Haas (rocket) before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Haas (rocket) ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Haas (rocket)

In research: Haas (rocket) appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Haas (rocket) in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Haas (rocket) is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics ARCAspace, Air launch to orbit, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Haas (rocket) outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Haas (rocket) in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Haas (rocket) means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Haas (rocket) out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Haas (rocket) in simple terms?

Why does Haas (rocket) matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Haas (rocket)?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Haas (rocket).