Moonshot #26

Could the space economy be rebounding? And all the other commercial space sector happenings to dig into this Earth Day.

Relativity Space’s 3D printing platform, known as Stargate, may soon feature “real time flaw detection,” thanks to some Air Force research funding. Credit: Relativity Space

Space Capital – NASA’s planetary science department may be cash poor but commercial satellite startups are rolling in it, thanks to “geopolitical uncertainties,” as Reuters reports. Chad Anderson from investment firm Space Capital calls the Q1 funding surge – largely in the geospatial intelligence market – a sign that the “overall space economy is rebounding.” A total of $6.5 billion went to space startups this past quarter, compared to $2.9 billion in the first quarter of 2023, and a World Economic Forum report projects only more growth – forecasting a $1.8 billion industry by 2035, to be exact.

Intelsat – One company looking at that government funding is Intelsat, who is expanding their multi orbit network. Taking the Goldilocks approach and adding seventeen Medium Earth Orbit satellites to their existing Geostationary and LEO presence. In their search for manufacturing partners for this endeavor – in a timeline of three-and-a-half to four years – Intelsat’s CEO David Wajsgras has discussed “the potential of securing a government contract.” Considering government interest in satellite communication redundancy, this funding shouldn’t be too hard to secure. That fact, along with Intelsat’s 2023 C-band spectrum clearance, positions the company well to focus on future investments. In fact, Intelset recently invested in Aalyria, a Google spinout with plans to provide high speed cosmic connectivity. 

Relativity Space – The Air Force has initiated a contract with Long Beach manufacturer Relativity Space to fund additive manufacturing research. The $8.7 million from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) will give Relativity Space two years to investigate “real time flaw detection” in the printing process, which is essentially just as it sounds. Particularly important in 3D printing, a feature that can catch a defect in the middle of production – that could risk throwing off the rest of the layers – could be a huge cost and resource saver in the long term. Fittingly, the deal comes after a Congress mandate urged the Department of Defense to invest in additive manufacturing research, with accelerating aerospace production in mind. Perhaps inspired by this work-smarter ideology, Relativity Space has also slowed its roll on the Terran R rocket, which the company now plans to debut in 2026. Unfortunately, this means they’ll lose their chance at scoring one of the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 contracts, which will be awarded this year. But the company feels hopeful for a NSSL contract in the future, where they will not be rushing their medium-lift launch vehicle before it’s ready..

Astroscale – As of April 11th, Japanese startup Astroscale has officially advanced their ADRAS-J spacecraft into the next phase of its debris-inspection mission. Since its launch in mid-February, the ADRAS-J, which stands for Active Debris Removal by Astroscale-Japan, has been traveling towards an H-2A upper stage, still lingering in LEO from a 2009 mission. So far, ground controllers have been responsible for leading the spacecraft to its target, but this new phase means ADRAS-J will have to go it on its own. Should the spacecraft succeed in its self-navigated approach – which involves using its thrusters to match the debris’ rotation and ultimately come within dozens of meters of the upper stage – it’ll be a huge moment for proximity operations. The feat would also give the spacecraft a chance at a second phase contract from JAXA, for a company to actually carry out the deorbit of the upper stage. Astroscale intends to complete their phase one approach before the end of May.