Starlab space station signs cargo contract with French startup
The French startup, The Exploration Company, on May 28, 2024 signed a contract with the consortium of American and European companies building the Starlab space station to fly three cargo missions using its proposed reusable Nyx unmanned freighter.
The Exploration Company is developing its reusable Nyx spacecraft, which will initially ferry cargo to and from low Earth orbit. The company also plans to offer versions of the spacecraft for crewed spaceflight in low Earth orbit and missions to the surface of the Moon. Earlier this month, The Exploration Company was awarded an initial €25 million European Space Agency (ESA) contract to perform a demonstration mission to ferry cargo to and from the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the agency’s LEO Cargo Return Services initiative.
Starlab, first proposed by the American company Voyager Space, has a development contract with NASA. Its partnership includes Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Airbus, Mitsubishi, and MDA Space. It has also signed a similar deal with India’s space agency ISRO to use its Gaganyaan manned capsule, as well as another deal with SpaceX’s Starship.
The French startup, The Exploration Company, on May 28, 2024 signed a contract with the consortium of American and European companies building the Starlab space station to fly three cargo missions using its proposed reusable Nyx unmanned freighter.
The Exploration Company is developing its reusable Nyx spacecraft, which will initially ferry cargo to and from low Earth orbit. The company also plans to offer versions of the spacecraft for crewed spaceflight in low Earth orbit and missions to the surface of the Moon. Earlier this month, The Exploration Company was awarded an initial €25 million European Space Agency (ESA) contract to perform a demonstration mission to ferry cargo to and from the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the agency’s LEO Cargo Return Services initiative.
Starlab, first proposed by the American company Voyager Space, has a development contract with NASA. Its partnership includes Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Airbus, Mitsubishi, and MDA Space. It has also signed a similar deal with India’s space agency ISRO to use its Gaganyaan manned capsule, as well as another deal with SpaceX’s Starship.