Technology
Stories about the tech that’s driving the new space age.
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…
