Starfish Space Secures $7M to Revolutionize In-Orbit Servicing

Starfish Space Secures $7 Million for Space Tug Development

Starfish Space, a company specializing in satellite servicing, has successfully completed a $7 million funding round. This investment will be used to expedite the development of a space tug designed for extending the operational lifespan of spacecraft and mitigating the growing issue of orbital debris.

The Evolution of Satellite Servicing

Historically, maintaining satellites in orbit presented significant challenges due to the prohibitive costs of space travel. Once launched, a spacecraft’s fate was largely sealed. Early successful servicing missions were primarily undertaken by governmental organizations like NASA.

A prime example of this was NASA’s undertaking of five crewed Space Shuttle missions during the 1990s. These missions were dedicated to the repair and system replacement of the Hubble Telescope.

Starfish Space: A New Approach

The landscape of in-orbit servicing is undergoing a transformation, with private companies increasingly taking the lead. Starfish Space is at the forefront of this shift.

Founded in 2019 by former Blue Origin engineers, Austin Link and Trevor Bennett, the company is based in Kent, Washington. Their primary project is the development of the Otter space tug.

Capabilities of the Otter Space Tug

The Otter is a compact spacecraft engineered to capture and reposition objects while in orbit. This capability offers dual benefits:

• Disposal of hazardous space junk.
• Prolonging the functionality of existing spacecraft in geostationary orbit.

Beyond these core functions, Starfish envisions the space tug technology evolving into autonomous in-orbit robots. These robots could support a wide array of activities within the emerging space economy, including resource extraction, in-space manufacturing, and material recycling.

Cephalopod Software and Ongoing Testing

Complementing the space tug, Starfish is also creating Cephalopod, an autonomous software system. This system is designed to manage rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking procedures.

Currently, the Cephalopod software is undergoing testing alongside a thruster system demonstration provided by Benchmark Space Systems. This testing is being conducted on Orbit Fab’s Tanker-001 Tenzing demo refueling satellite. (Orbit Fab was a participant in the TechCrunch Disrupt Battlefield in 2019.)

Recent Funding and Contracts

This $7 million funding round follows closely on the heels of a $1.7 million Phase II SBIR contract awarded by the U.S. Space Force. This contract supports the continued development of the Cephalopod software.

The latest funding was jointly led by NFX and MaC Venture Capital, with additional investment from PSL Ventures, Boost VC, Liquid2 Ventures, and Hypothesis.