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Some Austin startups are doing work that is out of this world.
Amid all the headlines of the Billionaire Space Race – the competition between Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson to launch rockets and tourist space flights – you may have missed the start of these Austin projects.
From lunar missions to satellites to training the next generation of space explorers, these Austin startups are at the cutting edge of space technology:
SYMBOL
A robotics, software, and building materials developer named ICON has had its materials appear in 3D printed houses in East Austin and in partnership with the Texas Military Department for 3D printed barracks. But they are also making progress on space projects.
Last month, the company announced it had won a government research contract that includes funding from NASA to develop a space-based construction system that could aid future lunar exploration.
The company now has an aerospace division. CEO Jason Ballard said the company is honored to begin what will be known as Project Olympus and the Olympus Construction System.
“Building mankind’s first homeland on another world will be the most ambitious construction project in human history, literally taking science, engineering, technology and architecture to new heights,” said Ballard. “NASA’s investment in such space-age technologies can not only help advance the future of humanity in space, but also solve very real, annoying problems we face on Earth.”
Firefly
We are one step closer to landing on the moon! After successfully completing the Critical Design Review (CDR) by @NASA, our Blue Ghost moon lander is scheduled for a landing in the Mare Crisium in September 2023. Congratulations BG-Team! https://firefly.com/firefly-aerospace-is-one-step-closer-to-landing-on-the-moon/u00a0u2026 # Fireflypic.twitter.com / d4Rb3BsyKe
– Firefly Aerospace (@Firefly Aerospace) 1635169797
Though its test launch was in flames in September, startup rocket company Firefly is on schedule for a lunar mission in October after NASA completed its critical design review. Commenting on the milestone, CEO Tom Markusic called it “another step on an aggressive schedule”.
“The meeting continues to demonstrate the ability of our spacecraft team to consistently do an incredible job,” said Markusic. “This mission is a forerunner of what we see as the growing cadence of recurring data and payload service missions in cis lunar space that will fuel a lunar economy.”
The spacecraft, dubbed the Blue Ghost lunar lander, plans to land in the Mare Crisium lunar basin in September 2023 and carry ten NASA payloads and several commercial payloads.
But they won’t stop there: the 2023 launch will be the first of expected annual lunar surface missions for Firefly.
Cesium Astro
CesiumAstro has raised more than $ 14 million in venture capital through building a number of communications system satellites, UAVs, launch vehicles and other space platforms and plans to hire a few dozen more employees in Austin. CEO Shey Sabripour founded the company in 2017 after a stint at Firefly, where he was Chief Technology Officer.
In September, CesiumAstro announced the successful launch and deployment of its first two satellites, a move Sabripour described as “one step closer to transforming in-orbit and aircraft connectivity”.
“Over the next decade, we will see great advances that will revolutionize a highly anticipated era of connected mobility,” said Sabripour. “Our suite of core technologies will be fully enhanced through consistent and frequent testing as we initiate our first fleet implementations.”
Now CesiumAstro, which boasts that its satellites provide an on-orbit test bed for the next generation of wireless communication and sensor technologies, has entered the next phase of testing. The satellites will conduct experiments over the next several months through which the company has offered demonstration partnerships with interested commercial and government organizations.
Slingshot aerospace
Slingshot Aerospace, based in Austin and El Segundo, Calif., Launched in 2017 and quickly secured major contracts with NASA, the US Air Force, and others.
A contract was with the US Space Force for a tool to train the next generation of space operators and engineers through simulations. However, in September the company announced that it would be available for commercial use through a partnership with the STEM3 Academy to make the space industry more accessible.
“The growing space industry needs top talent, but many are not trained in basic space astrodynamics, which is a barrier to entry. We have developed a tool that enables companies to incorporate astrodynamics into their training curriculum, opening the doors wide for recruiting. “Said CEO Melanie Stricklan. “At the same time, young students interested in space can more easily understand complex methods through visual and collaborative learning and empower them to develop concepts through research and exploratory means – to create space for everyone.”
HyperSciences
Working in areas like clean energy and mining, Hypersciences does not define itself as an orbital space company and said it aims to revolutionize several industries. Still, the company specializes in the application of hypersonic technology, which drives engines at five times the speed of sound, and has made aerospace at the core of its research. They also supply equipment to replace the first stage missile.
Mark Russell, a former senior engineer and manager of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, founded the Washington-based company in 2014 and brought with him a team that included Leon Vanstone, founder of the Texas Rocket Engineering Lab. The startup also has a key office in Austin.
“After years of looking rocket after rocket trying to predict failure, I realized we needed a new way to fly,” Russell said during a 2019 interview with South by Southwest.
He said he was drilling in a hole over two miles one night at 2am when he said, “Aha!” Moment. “I had seen a technology called the University of Washington’s Ram Accelerator, which was just a tube filled with natural gas and air that you could take a projectile and fly through and exit at several times the speed of sound to put vehicles in to bring it up to the edge of the atmosphere so you only need a tiny little rocket to get into space, “said Russel.” That set me on the path to merging aerospace with underground solutions. “
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