The Copenhagen Suborbitals DIY rocket and space organization suffered a big blow this weekend when co-founder Kristian von Bengtson announced his resignation:
- Kristian von Bengtson is leaving Copenhagen Suborbitals (pdf)
- Kristian von Bengtson leaving Danish rocket project – The Engineer (Google Translate)
Von Bengston cited conflicts with the other co-founder, Peter Madsen, as making it untenable for him to stay. He was clearly a major source of ideas and energy for the group. (See his blog at Wired.) It will be interesting to see if they can sustain their momentum without him as they try to continue the projects currently underway, including the launch of the big HEAT-2X rocket this summer, and towards their long term goal of a manned suborbital spaceflight.
Update: Here is a statement (somewhat garbled by the translator) from Peter Madsen: We must continue! – The Engineer (Google Translate).