Technology
Stories about the tech that’s driving the new space age.
Xona Passes Testing Milestone for Navigation Demo Mission
Xona Space Systems has completed testing for its first on-orbit navigation demo mission, Huginn. The spacecraft hardware is now with Spaceflight, Inc. for integration into the SpaceX Transporter-5 rideshare mission later this month. Getting around: The global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) in operation right now are owned and operated by governments. The US has GPS,…
Avio Vega-E M10 roars to life in Sardinia
Italian rocket builder Avio announced late last week that it had successfully tested its M10 methalox upper stage engine at its test facility in Sardinia. The engine will power the third stage of the company’s Vega-E rocket, which it expects to debut in 2026. The M10 at a glance: Vehicle: Vega-E Thrust: 98 kN Specific…
Nyx Gets Green Light
Franco-German startup The Exploration Company has successfully completed a system requirement review of its Nyx spacecraft. TLDR: The Exploration Company was founded in 2021 with the aim of supplying long-duration in-orbit hosting services to customers, at a fraction of the cost of the ISS. The company is developing a modular spacecraft capable of extended stays…
Discussions Continue over ASAT Testing Ban
Two weeks ago, VP Kamala Harris announced that the US would impose a ban on its own destructive, direct-ascent ASAT (ant-satellite) testing. The move is meant to set an example for other spacefaring nations to maintain a safe orbital environment. The US will also likely use its new posture as an example in upcoming UN…
Isotropic Is on Hiring Binge
Isotropic Systems has doubled in size over the last year, just recently signing its 130th hire, and expects to 2X again in the coming year, the British startup told Payload. The Reading, UK-based company has created—and successfully field-tested—a potentially revolutionary technology: multi-beam, multi-link, and all-orbit satellite terminals. Origin story In 2013, Isotropic CEO and founder…
Kepler Demonstrates Intersatellite Data Relay
Kepler has successfully demonstrated the ability to communicate between satellites on orbit, the company’s CEO Mina Mitry announced (H/T SpaceNews). Two data-relay terminals aboard satellites launched in January have been sending data packets back and forth since four days after launch, per Mitry. Intersatellite links The elusive tech is a big opportunity for satellite operators…
Ursa Major Passes 200 Employees, on the Heels of First Hadley Engine Deliveries
Images: Ursa Major. Left: Hadley hotfire @ Ursa Major HQ in Berthoud, CO. Right: Hadley being prepped for shipment. Ursa Major officially signed its 200th employee this week, CEO Joe Laurienti tells Payload. The Colorado startup, which bills itself as “America’s only independent pure-play rocket propulsion company,” had just north of 125 employees in early…
Geek Out: Quantum Communication
NASA dreams of a future network in which superfast, globally distributed quantum computers transmit data back and forth from space nearly instantaneously, without any packet loss. Enter SEAQUE. The Space Entanglement and Annealing QUantum Experiment (SEAQUE), developed by JPL along with a team of researchers from across the world, is the next step in making…
A Q&A with @Iridiumboss Matt Desch
Matthew Desch is the CEO of Iridium (NASDAQ:IRDM), a $5.1B satellite operator based in McLean, VA. Payload recently caught up with Desch across town at Satellite 2022. Over the course of an hour, we chatted about (shocker) satellites, constellation strategy, corporate reinvention, Iridium’s moat, “commodity broadband,” Ukraine, dual-use tech, SPACs, and more. There are three…
Venturi Astrolab Emerges from Stealth with a Lunar Rover Prototype
Venturi Astrolab has emerged from stealth with a lunar rover modular concept—and a prototype to boot. The rover, named FLEX (short for Flexible Logistics and Exploration), is designed to transport crew and cargo across the surface of the Moon. If it works there, the company also hopes the rover will be used on human missions to Mars.…
Spaceflight Debuts Sherpa Tug, which will Head to Orbit Soon with SpaceX
This morning, rideshare provider Spaceflight Inc. announced its newest mission: “SXRS-6.” In January, Spaceflight’s new Sherpa vehicle will launch on the SpaceX Transporter-3 rideshare mission. The Sherpa will carry 13 customer payloads. After deploying from a SpaceX Falcon 9, the Sherpa will drop off nine customer SmallSats in sun-synchronous orbit. A month later, the vehicle…
