What is CAPILUX?

CAPILUX is a student project being developed at Riga Technical University within the REXUS programme. The project focuses on studying capillary driven fluid flow in microgravity environment where surface tension becomes the dominant force. By observing how fluids move and interact with solid surfaces in a weightless environment CAPILUX aims to improve understanding of fluid dynamics relevant to space systems such as propellant management, thermal control, and life support systems.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

REXUS (Rocket Experiments for University Students) is a European student rocket program that allows university teams to perform scientific and technological experiments in near-space conditions. The program is operated by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the Swedish National Space Agency in collaboration with ESA, with launches taking place at the Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden. Each year, selected student teams fly their experiments on REXUS rockets, which reach altitudes of up to 90 km and provide several minutes of microgravity. After the flight, all experiments are recovered so that teams can analyze the collected data and draw scientific conclusions.

The main objective of the CAPILUX experiment is to study how liquids move and how they can be transported in microgravity using the capillary effect. The experiment focuses on fluid transport and passive valve behavior under microgravity conditions. The CAPILUX concept was presented by the RTU team at the ESA 17th REXUS/BEXUS Selection Seminar in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, where it was selected for flight. Over the next year, our goal is to bring the experiment to full flight readiness. The rocket launch is planned for March 2027.

TIMELINE

  • November 2025

     

    ESA Selection Workshop

  • January 2026

     

    PDR (Preliminary Design Review)

  • June 2026

    Tools Tools

    CDR (Critical Design Review)

  • September 2026

    Tools Tools

    IPR (Integration Progress Review)

  • November 2026

    Tools Tools

    EAR (Experiment Acceptance Review)

  • January 2027

    Tools Tools

    FRR (Flight Readiness Review)

  • March 2027

    Tools Tools

    Launch of the REXUS rocket

  • June 2027

    Tools Tools

    Experiment Analysis Submission

MEET THE TEAM

Ugur Golal

Ugur Golal

Team Leader
Nils Lucāns

Nils Lucāns

Mechanics
Kristofers Nīmanis

Kristofers Nīmanis

Electronics
Aleksandrs Stupenkovs

Aleksandrs Stupenkovs

Electronics
Miks Balodis

Miks Balodis

Software
Aleksandrs Kuzevanovs

Aleksandrs Kuzevanovs

Science

WANT TO SUPPORT US?

RIGA TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY | HIGH POWER ROCKETRY TEAM

E-MAIL: [email protected]