LH3M Wins Five Patents for Lunar Helium-3 Extraction
Lunar Helium-3 Mining, LLC (LH3M) secured its fifth US patent last month, covering the company’s end-to-end architecture for He-3 detection, extraction, and refinement on the Moon.
Technology
Stories about the tech that’s driving the new space age.
K2 Hotfire Paves a Path to Multi-Orbit Missions
K2 Space has spent the last year buying down risk and burning up fuel in preparation for its first customer mission in February 2026.
Atomic-6 Wins $2M DoD Contract For Solar Array Tech
Atomic-6 won a $2M contract from SSC to continue development of its Light Wing solar array, which collapses to enable RPO and stealth missions.
Xona Raises $92M For Unhackable PNT Constellation
Xona is one of many companies trying to solve PNT’s vulnerability problem.
OrbitsEdge’s First Mission to Space is a Shoe In
OrbitsEdge’s Edge1 computing module will host a range of AI agents, including the first AI shoe designer in space.
Integrate Wins $25M Space Force Contract
The contract is among the quickest the Space Force has awarded a Phase III contract to a software company.
Aethero Raises $8.4M for Space Computers
Kindred led the round, which included Neo, Giant Step Capital, O’Shaughnessy Ventures and Alumni Ventures.
Northrop Grumman Brings the Gig Economy to GEO
Northrop Grumman’s Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV) will wear a lot of hats in orbit, from gas station attendant and mechanic to orbital taxi and Airbnb host.
Reflect Orbital Raises $20M Series A
Reflect is planning to launch its first sat next spring to illuminate 10 locations around the world and boost public interest in nighttime lighting.
Zeno Power Raises $50M Series B
Zeno’s technology uses the heat emitted from nuclear waste—an isotope called Strontium-90—to power systems in extreme environments where solar cells and batteries fail.
Interlune Unveils Prototype Lunar Helium-3 Excavator
Space resources startup Interlune announced yesterday that its first customers are ready to buy its Moon-mined Helium-3.
Start Your Engines: The Lunar Rover Race Has Begun
Payload spoke with several companies building next-gen lunar rovers—including Astrolab, ispace, Intuitive Machines, and Lunar Outpost—about the biggest challenges and opportunities in this sector.