California-based Viridian Space has signed a cooperative research and development agreement with the US Air Force to advance air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) technology designed for satellites operating in very low Earth orbit (VLEO).<\/p>\n
Under the five-year agreement, the partners will jointly develop the propulsion system and study operational concepts for satellites flying at extremely low altitudes. The collaboration will be conducted at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, where the Air Force will provide facilities for ground testing. In return, Viridian will share data and insights on potential military applications of the technology.<\/p>\n
Viridian Chief Executive Slava Spektor said the arrangement covers a broad range of activities, from technology development to future data sharing from space-based demonstrations.<\/p>\n
The company aims to launch its first satellite within three years. Once in orbit, the platform could gather data on atmospheric density, drag and space weather effects at ultra-low altitudes, providing the U.S. Department of Defense with insights into how such conditions affect satellite performance and lifespan.<\/p>\n
Viridian\u2019s ABEP system is designed to use residual atmospheric particles as propellant, allowing satellites to maintain orbit without carrying large fuel reserves. The company expects its spacecraft could operate for up to 10 years while flying at altitudes as low as 150 kilometers \u2014 far below typical low Earth orbit satellites.<\/p>\n
Operating in VLEO could offer advantages for both military and commercial users. Earth observation satellites flying closer to the surface can capture higher-resolution imagery, while communications satellites may provide stronger signals, lower latency and improved bandwidth. Viridian said such platforms could also support direct-to-device connectivity services.<\/p>\n
The initiative comes as congestion increases in traditional low Earth orbit, prompting interest in alternative orbital regimes. If successful, ABEP technology could enable new satellite architectures capable of maneuvering between altitudes and extending mission durations without conventional propellant limitations.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
California-based Viridian Space has signed a cooperative research and development agreement with the US Air Force to advance air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) technology designed for satellites operating in very low Earth orbit (VLEO). Under the five-year agreement, the partners will jointly develop the propulsion system and study operational concepts for satellites flying at extremely low […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20879,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[7475,6900,5812,4998,7476,460,5841,2117,7477,298],"class_list":["post-20878","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-air-breathing-electric-propulsion","tag-kirtland-air-force-base","tag-north-america","tag-satellite-technology","tag-slava-spektor","tag-space-defense","tag-united-states","tag-us-air-force","tag-viridian-space","tag-vleo"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20878"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20878"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20878\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20879"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20878"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20878"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20878"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}