From space junk to interplanetary travel: Magdrive’s €9.9 million funding for spacecraft propulsion

Oxfordshire-based Magdrive, a start-up developing the next-generation of spacecraft propulsion, today introduced its EUR9.9 million Seed financing round led by pan-European VC Redalpine.

Creators Fund, that led Magdrive’s initial financing round, and Balerion, Alumni Ventures, Outsized Ventures, 7percent, and Business owner First additionally added to the round.

Chief Executive Officer and Founder Mark Stokes claimed: “Magdrive stands for the future generation of spacecraft propulsion, transforming humankind’s grand aspirations precede right into a fact with huge constellations, asteroid mining, and in-space maintenance, setting up, and production; all the foundation to make us an area making out human being.”

Magdrive was started in 2019 by Chief Executive Officer Mark Stokes, a mechanical and deep discovering designer with proficiency in hands-on prototyping of robotics and aerospace systems, and CTO Dr Thomas Clayson, a plasma physicist and pulsed power electronic devices designer.

According to Magdrive, what collections their electrical spacecraft propulsion system apart is its incomparable drive and performance, which will certainly permit spacecraft to take a trip further and manoeuvre with better accuracy than in the past.

Magdrive is presently getting ready for the initial in-space examinations of its Magdrive Rogue thruster, readied to introduce in June this year in partnership with D-Orbit, offering the quickly expanding satellite constellations market with a high-thrust and high-efficiency service at reduced mass and quantity.

Redalpine General Companion Harald Nieder claimed: “Magdrive’s modern technology has remarkable capacity to alter the video game in spacecraft propulsion to address huge discomfort factors in the status, consisting of manoeuvrability and durability. Propulsion is actually driving the arising area economic situation. We are pleased to back Tom, Mark, and the group as they press ahead this jump in spacecraft propulsion.”

The financing will certainly make it possible for Magdrive to proceed r & d for its cutting-edge high-thrust electrical propulsion systems for all dimensions of satellites, construct a production center in the UK, and develop a United States workplace.

Balerion Companion Dan Wallman included: ” We’re enjoyed sustain Magdrive in creating next-generation area propulsion systems. This revolutionary modern technology has the prospective to play a critical duty in commercialising area throughout the post-Starship period.”

Magdrive’s long-lasting objective is to scale up its propulsion system to sustain larger aspirations precede, consisting of arising sectors such as in-space maintenance, setting up, and production, space-based solar energy, big range constellation monitoring, and interplanetary traveling.

Magdrive makes use of strong steel as propellant– this can be sourced and refuelled from recycled ‘area scrap’ or various other in-space resources, such as planet mining, which is a lot more lasting and will certainly additionally permit far more large area traveling.

Formerly, Magdrive elevated a pre-Seed round of EUR1.9 million in 2020 and has actually additionally gotten over EUR9.5 countless federal government financing to day, consisting of assistance from the UK federal government, UK Area Company, and European Area Company.

With high drive and high performance at reduced mass, the Magdrive’s size enhancement in manoeuvrability allows brand-new objectives and company versions.

Be it high tempo evasion manoeuvres in overloaded Low-Earth Orbit, duplicated one night stand and close-proximity procedures for satellite maintenance and orbital production, or stochastic motion to make protection satellites untraceable.

The message From space junk to interplanetary travel: Magdrive’s €9.9 million funding for spacecraft propulsion showed up initially on EU-Startups.