Saturday, 14 August 2021 (YJC)_Rocket Lab will build and launch three of its Photon spacecraft to serve as platforms for a startup with space manufacturing aspirations.
Rocket Lab announced Aug. 11 a contract with Varda Space Industries for three Electron launches of its Photon spacecraft. The launches are scheduled from the first quarter of 2023 through 2024, with the option for a fourth mission.
Each Photon will serve as a platform for Varda’s “space factories,” hardware the startup is developing to produce a range of products in the microgravity environment of low Earth orbit. The Photons will provide propulsion and station-keeping, as well as attitude control and communications. Varda will develop the 120-kilogram factories, which include a return capsule that will reduce the manufactured products back to Earth at the end of a three-month mission.
Rocket Lab sees the deal as evidence of one of the selling points of its smallsat system. “Photon enables our customers to unlock the full potential of space. It removes a massive barrier to the growing small satellite market by delivering our customers a versatile and configurable spacecraft platform that they don’t need to build themselves,” Peter Beck, chief executive of Rocket Lab, said in a statement. “Our customers get to orbit faster and can focus purely on their mission while there, rather than worrying about developing and operating a spacecraft.”
“Photon is a great fit for our mission and their team has displayed significant engineering rigor. Working with them will allow us to deliver on our aggressive schedule and tight budget,” Will Bruey, chief executive of Varda, said in a statement.
Varda raised a $42 million Series A round July 28, led by Khosla Ventures and Caffeinated Capital, and has raised $53 million to date. The company, based in Torrance, California, says its goal is to be the “worldwide leader in commercial microgravity manufacturing.”
Your Comment