Company - Impulse Space
Product/Service - Mira, LEO Express, Helios, Caravan
- Classification
- In-Space Transportation
- Category
- Space Tug
Commercial Lander
Commercial Mars Lander
- Fields
- In-Space Transportation
- Status
- Demonstrated
- First launch
- 2023
Space Tug
- LEO Express-1 will carry a primary payload for an undisclosed customer. The mission profile is still being finalized, but he said the vehicle, after making some initial deployments, may raise its orbit, then lower it to demonstrate operations in what’s known as very low Earth orbit, around 300 kilometers.
- The performance of Mira depends on how much payload it is carrying, but he estimated that the vehicle can provide about 1,000 meters per second of delta-v, or change in velocity, with a payload of 300 kilograms. Its propulsion system, using storable propellants, has been extensively tested, with more than 1,000 seconds of runtime, while other elements of the vehicle are in various stages of design and manufacturing.
- Mira is the first in a series of vehicles Impulse Space is developing, with future vehicles capable of placing payloads into geostationary transfer orbits or direct insertions into geostationary orbit.
HEO Announces Partnership with Impulse Space for Non-Earth Imaging Services, 2024-02-06.
- HEO, a space technology company specializing in non-Earth imaging (NEI) and in-orbit satellite inspection, announced a partnership with Impulse Space, a leader in in-space transportation services.
- Under the agreement, Impulse will host HEO’s in-space imager, HOLMES-007, onboard a Mira orbital transfer vehicle (OTV) as part of the LEO Express-2 mission. This will be HEO’s third Holmes Imager in space and the first commercial camera dedicated to non-Earth imaging in high Low Earth Orbit (High LEO), presenting new prospects for satellite inspection.
- Exolaunch will supply advanced separation systems for cubesats and microsats, such as the industry-leading EXOpod Nova and CarboNIX, as well as integration and mission management services.
- Impulse Space will contribute its suite of OTVs, including Mira for delivering satellites in LEO, MEO, GEO, Cislunar or beyond; Helios, their high-performance kick stage, will also service satellites targeting Geostationary Orbit. Together, using hardware and services, the companies can offer customers detailed mission design analysis and solutions for unique orbital requirements.
- Exolaunch and Impulse Space will jointly support a launch as early as fall 2024 with the LEO Express-2, where multiple customer satellites will be deployed throughout the mission. The companies will continue to collaborate on missions in 2025 and beyond under the terms of the agreement.
Introducing the Upgraded Mira: Bringing In-Space Mobility to GEO and Beyond, 2025-0-06.
Helios
Impulse Space sees strong demand for GEO rideshare program, 2025-08-13:
- That GEO rideshare service, which Impulse Space recently named Caravan, will involve an annual series of dedicated Falcon 9 launches of Helios, currently planned for the third quarter of each year. The first mission, Caravan 1, is scheduled for the third quarter of 2026 and is fully booked. Caravan 2 will follow in 2027 and Caravan 3 in 2028.
- The missions will use the Helios vehicle to rapidly transfer from an initial low Earth orbit to GEO. One burn shortly after payload deployment puts Helios into a geostationary transfer orbit, while a second about six hours later circularizes the orbit just above GEO. Payload deployment takes place eight hours after launch.
- The payloads will be dropped off about 500 kilometers above GEO, allowing payloads to drift at a rate of about five degrees per day to reach their desired orbital slot and then lower themselves into GEO. After deployment, Impulse will then move Helios into a higher graveyard orbit and passivate it.
NASA Selects Six Companies to Provide Orbital Transfer Vehicle Studies, 2025-08-05.
- NASA has selected six companies to produce studies focused on lower-cost ways to launch and deliver spacecraft of various sizes and forms to multiple, difficult-to-reach orbits.
- The firm-fixed-price awards comprise nine studies with a maximum total value of approximately $1.4 million.
- Impulse Space will produce two studies. The company provides in-space mobility with two vehicles, Mira and Helios. Mira is a high-thrust, highly maneuverable spacecraft for payload hosting and deployment, while Helios is a high-energy kick stage to rapidly deliver payloads from low Earth to medium Earth orbits, geostationary orbits and beyond.
Engines
Mars Missions
- Relativity is scheduled to launch Impulse’s Mars Cruise Vehicle and Mars Lander in Terran R from Cape Canaveral, FL in an exclusive arrangement until 2029. Terran R will deliver Impulse’s Mars Cruise Vehicle and Mars Lander on a trans-Mars injection (TMI) orbit launched from Earth to Mars.
- Once in Mars orbit, the aeroshell-equipped Mars Lander will enter the red planet's atmosphere and propulsively land on Mars’ surface. Impulse’s Mars Lander will have its own payload capacity to the Martian surface, supporting the research and development needed to build toward humanity’s multiplanetary future.
NASA Selects Commercial Service Studies to Enable Mars Robotic Science, 2024-05-01.
- Small payload delivery and hosting services.
- Impulse Space, Inc., Redondo Beach, California — adapt an Earth-vicinity orbital transfer vehicle (space tug).
Status Comment
- 2023-12-28: LEO Express-1 launched on Transporter-9 and seems to be working well in orbit as per updates in social media. Mission concluded.
Notes
- LEO Express-1 Mission Updates, 2024-07-26.
- Impulse signs GEO rideshare contract with Space Network Services, 2024-09-16.
- Impulse Space Secures $150M In Series B Funding To Support Ongoing Company Momentum, 2024-10-01.
- Anduril and Impulse Space to collaborate on AI-driven satellite mobility, 2024-10-12.
- SES Satellites signs multi-launch deal, 2025-05-22.
Sources
Most sources should be linked in the texts and headings as revealed by mouse-over, but here are they listed for visibility.
News, Research, Projects and Patents
| Title | Type | Date | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Impulse Space announces first orbital transfer vehicle mission | News | 2023-01-05 |
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