Ryan Duffy
NASA Launches Artemis I
We’re on our way back to the Moon. In the wee hours of the morning, NASA finally got the 322-foot-tall Artemis I off the ground. This was the third attempt to launch the $4.1B Mega Moon Rocket. Previous attempts dating back to August were foiled by leaky hydrogen lines, faulty sensors, and two hurricanes. The…
Military Spaceplane Returns Home, After 900+ Days in Space
After 908 days in space—and smashing its own previous orbital endurance record in July—the Boeing-built, US Air & Space Force-operated X-37B has returned to Earth. The reusable military spaceplane touched down Saturday at 5:22am at NASA Kennedy’s Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility. Oh (TV-6), the places you’ll go… Orbital Test Vehicle-6, as the name suggests,…
Why Apex Believes the Satellite Bus Sector Is Ripe for Innovation
Apex recently announced itself to the world with a $7.5M seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz. The startup seeks to manufacture 100-kilogram class satellite buses that can support ~100 kg of payload. Its first product is called Aries. Last month, Payload caught up with Apex Cofounder and CEO Ian Cinnamon. He previously founded Synapse, a…
Pathfinder #0023, featuring Awais Ahmed
Today’s episode takes us to the bleeding edge of Earth observation, where one startup aims to bring what it claims is a step change in multispectral data to the commercial markets. Our guest, Awais Ahmed, is the CEO and cofounder of Pixxel. The Indian-American startup, which is building a health monitor for Earth, has raised…
Exclusive: Wyvern Raises $7M in New Funding
Wyvern has raised $7M in a seed plus round led by Uncork Capital, bringing the hyperspectral startup’s total financing to ~$15M to date. Previous investors MaC Venture Capital and Y Combinator also participated in this round. MaC led Wyvern’s seed round in October 2021; Wyvern also recently graduated from YC’s W22 batch. The Edmonton, Canada…
SatixFy Completes SPAC Merger
SatixFy completed its SPAC merger with Endurance Acquisition Corp ($EDNC) last week, after shareholders voted to approve the deal Wednesday. The Israeli satcom company had its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, Oct. 28, represented by the ticker $SATX. SatixFy 101 The company is a fabless chipmaker and developer…
A Q+A with Relativity Boss Tim Ellis on First Launch, Terran R, and More
Relativity is in the final innings of prep work for “Good Luck, Have Fun,” its first orbital flight attempt. The Relativity team is integrating Terran 1 in its Space Coast hangar right now, and plans to roll the rocket out to the launchpad in the coming weeks. While all eyes may soon be on Terran…
Pathfinder #0022, featuring Andy Lapsa
Today’s episode takes us to the burbs of Seattle, where one startup aims to build an entirely new type of rocket. Our guest, Andy Lapsa, is the CEO and cofounder of Stoke Space. The startup, whose north star is building 100% reusable rockets, raised a $9.1M seed round in 2020, graduated from Y Combinator’s Winter…
Apex Space Emerges from Stealth with a16z-Led $7.5M Seed Round
Apex, an LA-based satellite developer, emerged from stealth today with $7.5M+ in funding. Andreessen Horowitz led the round, with participation from XYZ, J2, Lux Capital, and Village Global. The name of the game Apex aims to manufacture satellite buses in the 100-kilogram class that can support ~100 kgs of payload. It aims to sell Aries,…
Credit Suisse Initiates Aerospace & Defense (A&D) Coverage
Credit Suisse has initiated coverage of the aerospace & defense (A&D) industry. In an analyst note issued on Oct. 11 and seen by Payload, the bank writes that the two should not be viewed in the same light, and that “A” and “D” are a zero-sum game. “From 1940 to 2017, these two sectors worked…
A Q+A with Vast Founder Jed McCaleb
Earlier this year, Vast emerged from stealth with a bold goal: to build the world’s (or solar system’s?) first artificial-gravity space station. The benefit of such a design, the El Segundo startup argues, is that it would offer “a healthier environment for long-term stays in space.” It’s still early days, but the thinking is that…
Pathfinder #0021, with Ryan Duffy (Opposite Day Edition)
Today is Opposite Day at Pathfinder. Rather than interview someone, Ryan himself is sitting down in the hot seat to take an hour’s worth of questions. Our guest host is cofounder Mo Islam. Though he’s Ryan’s coworker, he’s also his boss and a fair, unsparing interviewer. Pathfinder #0021 is brought to you by Spaced Ventures,…
Amazon Picks ULA’s Vulcan for First Two Kuiper Satellites
The e-commerce giant behind Project Kuiper has changed its travel plans for Kuipersat-1 and Kuipersat-2. On Wednesday, Amazon said its first two demo satellites will launch on United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan Centaur rocket in early 2023. In late 2021, Amazon said it would launch the two demo birds with ABL Space Systems in Q4…
