The UK Space Agency has awarded Orbit Fab a £1.3 million Major Project grant under their National Space Innovation Program — this grant will fund the design of a high-pressure variant of the RAFTI (Rapidly Attachable Fuel Transfer Interface) refueling port, set to be available in 2025. 

This new variant will enable refueling with pressurized fuels, such as Xenon, promoting more sustainable space operations and thereby reducing the need for single-use satellites.

In addition to the UK Space Agency funding announcement, Orbit Fab has secured additional contracts — including £165,000 — with the European Space Agency (ESA) via City University London, and a £500,000 contract as the prime for the phase 1 design of a mission to refuel a future UK Active Debris Removal spacecraft. 

The “UKRefuel” mission, in collaboration with industry partners ClearSpace and Astroscale aims to launch a satellite refueling service to LEO by 2027. These initiatives, following Orbit Fab’s signing of the ESA Zero Debris Charter, underscore the company’s dedication to sustainable space practice and responsible refueling. 

Additionally, the UK Space Agency is announcing two other projects as part of their National Space Innovation Program, which Orbit Fab is supporting. Orbit Fab is collaborating with Magdrive on a replaceable solid-fuel cartridge for Magdrive’s propulsion system, and with Lunasa on sensors for safe rendezvous and proximity operations in orbit.

Following a year of extraordinary growth, Orbit Fab has tripled the size of its UK workforce to 15 and will be opening a new office in Harwell, Oxfordshire. This expansion will continue to support the development and operation of orbital refueling services, essential for national security, telecommunications, earth observation, and scientific missions in space.

Daniel Faber, CEO and Co-Founder of Orbit Fab, said, “Expanding our UK office and embarking on these new projects is a significant milestone for Orbit Fab. With the support of the UK Space Agency and our partners, we are enhancing the UK’s space capabilities and setting new standards for sustainable space operations. The projects led by our UK team will enable us to refuel more satellites and customers than ever before. Our UK and US offices are working together to pave the way for a future where orbital refueling is standard practice, driving a bustling in-space economy ensuring a more sustainable space environment.”  

Dr. Paul Bate, CEO of the UK Space Agency, said, “The National Space Innovation Program will help kickstart growth, create high-quality jobs, protect our planet and preserve the space environment for future generations. New projects, like this one led by Orbit Fab, go to the heart of what we want to achieve as a national space agency that supports cutting-edge innovation, spreads opportunity across the UK and delivers the benefits of space back to citizens on Earth.”

Leonardo is also involved in the talks thanks to the Space Alliance‘s joint ventures with Thales. Founded in 2005, this strategic partnership includes two joint ventures: satellite producer Thales Alenia Space (Thales 67 percent, Leonardo 33 percent) and satellite services provider Telespazio (Leonardo 67 percent, Thales 33 percent) .

The combined entity would be similar to MBDA, a successful cross-border European missile consortium, and aim to enhance Europe’s strategic independence in space. However, significant hurdles, including regulatory approval and overcoming political tensions, lie ahead.

This potential partnership comes as both companies grapple with financial challenges in their space divisions. Declining demand for large satellites — such as Thales‘ Spacebus series and Airbus‘ Eurostar bus — and the rise of smaller, cheaper alternatives, like Space X‘s Starlink, have impacted their bottom lines. A merger could help them address these issues and better compete in the evolving space market.

Although GEO (Geosynchronous Orbit) satellites will continue to have their place, the smaller LEO (Low Earth Orbit) satellites have grown heavily in popularity thanks to SpaceX and other LEO operators.

by Richard Pettibone and Carter Palmer

Redwire Corporation (NYSE: RDW) has signed a strategic cooperation agreement (SCA) with Phase Four to build and deliver advanced thruster technology designed for reliable, high-volume production to meet the surge in demand across national security space programs — the SCA provides a framework that allows for joint development of this advanced thruster.

Redwire and Phase Four will design and develop a reliable and efficient Hall Effect Thruster (HET), called the Valkyrie Thruster, based on an existing design. The highly flexible and streamlined design will yield a shorter production schedule enabling reliable, high-volume production.

Redwire and Phase Four will leverage their expertise to manufacture the power processing unit hardware, thruster, propellant management software, and software control, which both companies will integrate into flight panels.

Redwire will leverage its business operations at scale, marketing resources, and extensive heritage as a trusted space systems supplier to bring this in-space propulsion system to market. The Valkyrie thrusters are anticipated to go into full rate production in 2025.

“Redwire offers a range of solutions designed to support high-volume small satellite manufacturing, and through this partnership, we are focused on delivering an optimal in-space propulsion technology that can specifically address the challenges in the propulsion supply chain,” said Redwire’s President of Space Systems Adam Biskner. “This reliable, mass producible design will offer a scalable in-space propulsion solution within DoD’s small satellite supply chain and will serve many other national security space applications.”

“The partnership between Phase Four and Redwire provides both civilian and military space operators another stable and reliable domestic source of electric propulsion systems,” said Steve Kiser, Phase Four CEO. “Phase Four’s market differentiating capabilities and history of propulsion innovation, coupled with Redwire’s mission and engineering expertise, will meaningfully expand the types and volume of Hall Effect Thrusters to an industry that is increasingly challenged to deliver enough propulsion supply. We look forward to exploring all the opportunities this partnership presents.”

AAC Clyde Space (“AAC Clyde Space”) has entered into a share sale and purchase agreement, whereby AAC Clyde Space acquires 100 percent of the outstanding shares in Spacemetric AB (“Spacemetric”) for a consideration amounting to approximately 16 million Swedish Krona (MSEK 16) and possible earn-outs based on certain milestones of up to a total of approximately MSEK 9 (the “Transaction”). Closing of the Transaction is subject to inter alia approval under the Swedish Protective Security Act.

The Transaction expands AAC Clyde Space’s range of services within Space Data as a Service (SDaaS) and Missions, bringing in-house key capabilities for EO image processing for analytics and AI and will be a part of the xSPANCION enabled Cyclops constellation at AAC Clyde Space.

Spacemetric is a leading provider of geospatial data management systems for satellite and airborne imaging and video sensors, transforming raw data into imagery products ready for analytics and AI. For the financial year 2023, Spacemetric’s turnover was approximately MSEK 14.3 and had a positive net result amounting to approximately KSEK 817, and is well positioned for further growth.

The total consideration amounts to a maximum of approximately MSEK 25, out of which approximately MSEK 16 shall be paid in connection with closing of the Transaction, which in turn shall divided into approximately MSEK 8 in cash consideration and approximately MSEK 8 in shares in AAC Clyde Space.

The earn-out shall amount to approximately MSEK 9 and shall be paid based on the achievement of certain earn-out milestones. The earn-out shall be divided between approximately MSEK 4 in cash consideration and approximately MSEK 5 in warrants which entitles to subscribe for shares in AAC Clyde Space, provided that the earn-out milestones are achieved.

The purchase price is subject to a post-closing adjustment, pursuant to which the cash consideration shall be adjusted. Such adjustment shall be based on the difference between the normalized working capital and the final net working capital.

The consideration shares shall be subject to lock-up undertakings for a period ranging from 360-810 days following the first day of trading of the shares and the earn-out shares, which can be subscribed for by exercising the warrants, shall be subject to lock-up undertakings for a period of 360 days following the first day of trading of such shares.

Luis Gomes, AAC Clyde Space CEO, said, “The acquisition of Spacemetric is an exciting milestone and a key step in the growth of AAC Clyde Space’s SDaaS business. It will bring to the group an advanced capability to process and catalogue Earth Observation data, making it ready for analytics algorithms and AI information extraction. As our xSPANCION enabled Cyclops constellation becomes a reality, generating vast amounts of data every day, Spacemetric’s capabilities will allow us to deliver better data and more valuable analytics products to our customers, faster. Furthermore, Spacemetric’s software solutions, which can run stand alone, in the cloud or on board satellites, offer an unparalleled flexibility to our Earth Observation Mission customers, who can now get a full solution for their earth imaging data needs when procuring data or a satellite from AAC Clyde Space. We are very pleased to welcome the Spacemetric team and we look forward to our joint work to expand our market.”

Synspective Inc. successfully raised 7 billion yen in a Series C funding round — this latest funding was led by Japan Growth Capital Investment Corporation, managed by Nomura SPARX Investment, Inc., and Investment Limited Partnerships operated by JAFCO Group Co., Ltd. and Investment Limited Partnerships operated by Mizuho Capital Co., Ltd., among others. The total funding for third-party allotment has been 28.1 billion yen and 8.3 billion yen for loan contracts.

Synspective develops and operates high-frequency, high-resolution SAR satellites to provide data analytics and solution services. On March 13, 2024, the company launched the fourth SAR satellite, StriX-3, which successfully reached its target orbit. The firm intends to establish a constellation of 30 SAR satellites by the late 2020s, enabling Synspective to observe changes anywhere on Earth.

Synspective will use the new capital to develop, manufacture, launch, and operate our SAR satellites, prepare mass production facilities, develop satellite data solutions, and expand globally, driving further business growth.

Dr. Motoyuki Arai, Synspective founder and CEO, said, “With further support from our investors, Synspective will expand its business using SAR satellites and analytics, which have proven reliable. This financing will accelerate our global business expansion, which we aim to fully realize by the end of this year with the start of mass production at our plant and the enhancement of our satellite constellation. We sincerely appreciate the trust our investors have placed in us. We will continue to work with a sense of mission to make human economic activities sustainable with solutions that respect the global environment and resources.”

Simera Sense is strengthening the firm’s global presence by opening an office in Toulouse, France. This move is a testament to its growth strategy, bolstered by the 13.5 euros million funding secured in an investment round earlier this year.

The company already has 19 optical payloads in space and another 43 delivered and ready for launch to customers worldwide. Many of these clients are European-based, including Loft Orbital, Prométhée Earth Intelligence, AAC Clyde Space, Open Cosmos, OHB Systems AG, and many others. This rapid growth and demand for Simera Sense’s optical payloads necessitate expanding its development and production capacity.

Toulouse, strategically selected for its position within the aerospace ecosystem, will be the home of the new facility. This facility, an R&D engineering and production hub, will service the existing client pool in France as well as the rest of Europe and will also contribute to developing High- to Very High-resolution optical payloads for Earth Observation (EO).

“Simera Sense is recruiting for several positions at its Toulouse office, including senior and junior roles. Join us to be part of a dynamic team in the NewSpace ecosystem.” said Kammy Brun, Managing Director of Simera Sense, France. “We look forward to building a solid team with expertise and experience in optics, thermal systems engineering, embedded software engineering and AIT (Assembly, Integration and Testing). Our core team will comprise 4 to 6 members by Q4 this year, and we have multiple job openings, including senior project manager, senior systems engineers, public relations& bid managers, and several PhD vacancies. The team is expected to double in size by 2025 and triple by the following year.”

Charlotte Voisin, Business Development Manager for Aeronautics & Space at Invest in Toulouse, said, “We are delighted that Simera Sense is opening a subsidiary in Toulouse, the European Capital of Space. Since 2019, I have supported the Simera team by facilitating connections with our ecosystem, potential customers, and key institutions. This nearly five-year effort has been fruitful, as Simera Sense has successfully developed commercial products and grown from a start-up to a scale-up with the opening of their French subsidiary. This new R&D and engineering centre will serve both European and global customers, thanks to the collaborative efforts of Aerospace Valley, ADOCC, Business France, and Toulouse’s economic development agency.“

Founded in 2018, Simera Sense is a leading provider of end-to-end earth observation camera solutions for the global small satellite market. Its high-resolution, ‘off-the-shelf’ cameras are used by diverse clients across a wide range of industries. Our core team’s passion for space and satellite engineering fuels our mission, along with a firm belief in the transformative power of small, cost-effective satellites. We have meticulously engineered a suite of cameras that are not only optimally sized but also configurable for diverse missions. These cameras comply with the leading standardised satellite bus interfaces and data formats.

Exolaunch has successfully integrated the firm’s customer satellites for the upcoming Transporter-11 Rideshare mission with SpaceX — the mission is expected to be Exolaunch’s largest mission of 2024 thus far, servicing 42 smallsats for 23 global customers.

Scheduled to lift off later this summer, the Transporter-11 Rideshare mission will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This mission signifies Exolaunch’s ongoing commitment to advancing global access to space and marks the company’s participation in all 11 Transporter missions to date since the program’s inception.

Exolaunch’s customers on the Transporter-11 mission represent a diverse array of government space agencies, commercial companies, and academic research institutions, from the following nations: Argentina, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States.

Exolaunch clients onboard this mission will receive the company’s decade of expertise in enabling successful deployments for nearly 400 satellites to date, and a comprehensive service package designed to effectively navigate complex technical, logistical, and legal processes. This package includes launch capacity and mission planning, end-to-end testing, integration, global shipping, and the deployment of their satellites using Exolaunch’s flight-proven hardware.

More than 30 EXOpod Nova containerized deployers and CarboNIX ring-based separation systems will be utilized to support the deployment of customer satellites on this mission. These proprietary systems are part of Exolaunch’s renowned suite of satellite separation technologies and known for their reliability and effectiveness in space missions.

Integrations with the deployment systems have been successfully completed at Exolaunch’s headquarters in Berlin and globally for its cubesat customers, and the final integration campaign is currently underway at Vandenberg Space Force Base.

“We are honored to enable this launch campaign for 42 customer satellites on our largest mission of the year. We extend our gratitude to our customers for their continued loyalty and trust in Exolaunch’s services, and thank SpaceX for their excellent launch preparations,” said Robert Sproles, chief technology officer at Exolaunch.

“Our long-standing collaboration with SpaceX has been integral to Exolaunch’s own growth, and we are proud to have been a part of all Transporter launches since the inception of the highly successful Rideshare program,” said Jeanne Allarie, chief commercial officer at Exolaunch. “We look forward to launch and deployment of these satellites, further contributing to crucial developments in rideshare missions and access to space for all.”

Kepler Communications recently successfully validated optical inter-satellite links (OISLs) between two data relay satellites in LEO.  

During a commissioning and early operations phase, Kepler established optical inter-satellite links between two Pathfinder satellites equipped with Space Development Agency (SDA) compatible Tesat SCOT80 optical terminals.

The first file transferred over the optical connection was a recent picture of Kepler’s global team gathered near its headquarters in Toronto, Canada (photo below). In the first week of testing, the company successfully sent diagnostic data between the two spacecraft, and the full link performance was demonstrated according to the SDA standard. In addition, multiple acquisition scenarios were tested, and both terminal and spacecraft performed optimally. 

In addition to initial optical link commissioning, the company has demonstrated Internet Protocol (IP) mesh networking on-orbit by communicating with multiple satellites in real time over a single ground link, using standard protocols including Secure Shell (SSH), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and User Datagram Protocol (UDP). 

Kepler is scaling operations to deploy the first Tranche of its next-generation constellation and expects to offer initial optical services in 2025. The hybrid optical data relay network builds on flight heritage from Kepler’s existing constellation of 21 RF satellites. The Kepler Network provides customers with always-available coverage in LEO, streamlining on-orbit communications with sub-second end-to-end latency, gigabit throughputs, and onboard processing to enable access to space-generated data in near-real time. 

Established in 2015, Kepler has quickly grown into a global space company and provides secure optical data relay services to government and commercial missions as a partner in modern space communications. The company’s investors include IA Ventures, Costanoa Ventures, Canaan Partners, Tribe Capital, BDC Capital’s Industrial Innovation Venture Fund, and other leading investors. The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) also contributed a grant toward the completion of the Pathfinder technology.   

“Kepler is proud to make significant progress in creating the critical Internet infrastructure needed to solve compounding data needs in space. This OISL achievement is a testament to the hard work, determination, and brilliance of our Kepler team,” said Mina Mitry, chief executive officer and co-founder of Kepler. “The Kepler Network will act as a data transport layer, bringing modern Internet capabilities to space through an interoperable architecture that will revolutionize space communications as we know it.”  

Kepler Communications, Inc. is a satellite telecommunications provider on a mission to build the Internet for space. Incorporated in 2015, Kepler provides real-time, continuous connectivity for space communications, abolishing barriers to make space-generated data universally available. The company is vertically integrated, with an in-house production facility allowing satellites to be designed and built on-site. The Kepler Network will initially service low Earth orbit (LEO) and plans to provide connectivity services to space missions in LEO, MEO, GEO, and beyond. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Kepler is building a global company to enable communications for the future space economy.

TESAT was recently selected by MDA Space Ltd. (TSX:MDA) to deliver 792 Optical Communication Terminals (OCT) as part of the supply chain for MDA AURORA^TM.

The 792 SCOT80 OCTs will be manufactured on a specific line in TESAT’s new high-volume production facility in Backnang, Germany. The facility has been built to meet the requirements of next space satellite constellations. The MDA AURORA^TM supply chain will help support product deliveries for anchor customer Telesat LEO satellite constellation Telesat Lightspeed, an innovative, advanced global network that will bring enterprise-class connectivity to customers worldwide.

TESAT began its collaboration with MDA Space more than 20 years ago and the company’s have been working closely together on several successful space programs since that time.

“We feel honored that we have been selected once again working in close cooperation with MDA Space for Telesat Lightspeed. This program will result in the next level of advanced broadband networks. We have been preparing for this kind of constellation orders by investing continuously in R&D to keep our pole position in optical communications technology, already proven by in-orbit applications with more than 86,000 successful links, and by investing in our new production facility in Backnang for serial production of OCTs. The trust that MDA Space puts again in us now proves that we are well on track,” said Thomas Reinartz, CEO of TESAT.

Pale Blue Inc. has completed its Series B funding round of 2.5 billion yen (approx. $16 million)— this funding will accelerate research, development, and manufacturing of propulsion systems for small satellites.

The Series B funding round was completed through a third-party allocation of new shares to venture capital and CVC funds. Including the amount raised during the first close announced in October of 2023, the total amount raised in this Series B funding round is approximately 2.5 billion yen (approx. $16 million). With this funding, the company will focus on the development and on-orbit demonstration of the firm’s water ion thruster and water Hall-effect thruster, the establishment of a development base for production technologies, and the enhancement of the Pale Blue team.

Jun Asakawa, CEO and Co-Founder of Pale Blue, said, “With this Series B funding round, Pale Blue will strengthen its team while accelerating the development and on-orbit demonstration of our water ion thruster and water Hall-effect thruster, as well as the establishment of a development base for production technologies. We are deeply grateful for the support of our investors and remain committed to developing innovative technologies and implementing them in society. We will create a mobility that is core to the space industry and pioneer the expansion of human possibility.”

CEO and General Partner Kazumasa Watanabe of aSTART Co., Ltd., said, “Our company has cultivated extensive knowledge and relationships, particularly with enterprises providing low Earth orbit services for small satellites. One of the significant challenges we have identified is the absence of propulsion systems that can deliver safety, high-performance, low-cost, sustainability, and short-lead-times. Pale Blue is developing technologies that address all these issues simultaneously, revolutionizing the satellite propulsion market. We are fully committed to supporting this transformative journey that will change the world.”

Yasuhiro Saito Department Manager, Innovation Department, YAMATO TRANSPORT CO., LTD., Senior Manager, Innovation Department, YAMATO HOLDINGS CO., LTD., said, “We have decided to make an additional investment in Pale Blue in the hope that its advanced technological capabilities will make a significant contribution to the market expansion of the space industry. We are also attracted to Pale Blue because it is a company that addresses environmental issues and has a high affinity with our goal of contributing to the realization of a sustainable future. We will continue to work with the company to create new value.“

Hidetaka Aoki, Partner/Fellow, Global Brain Corporation, said, “Following the previous Series A round, we have made additional investment in Pale Blue. We think Pale Blue deserves credit for speedily promoting its business based on its advanced technological capabilities, and for having a solid track record in space. Space Sustainability is becoming an increasingly important theme, and we expect Pale Blue to become a world leader in this field as well.”

General Partner Shinzo Nakano / Principal, Kaoru Nakagamie of ITC Ventures, Inc., said, “In recent years, the space business has been experiencing significant global growth, and it remains one of the few promising sectors where Japanese startups can compete on an international level. Pale Blue, a highly capable startup originating from the University of Tokyo, has already built a strong track record of orders from both domestic and international clients. We have decided to invest in this promising company and are committed to fully supporting their business expansion as ITV.””

Pale Blue is a space technology company that was spun out from the University of Tokyo in 2020. The company is dedicated to providing a propulsion solution for spacecraft and it produces a range of systems that use water as a propellant. Through its innovative propulsion technology, Pale Blue aims to create mobility that is core to the space industry.