Electric shock (9/6/23)

Good morning. Good luck to JAXA, which is expecting to launch its SLIM lunar lander this evening Eastern time.

Today’s newsletter:
♻️ Manastu Space pre-Series A
🌊 China launches from the sea
📃 Space opportunities
💸 The term sheet

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Manastu Space Closes $3M Pre-Series A

India’s space industry got an energizing shock from its lunar landing two weeks ago, and so far, the flurry of investment activity isn’t showing any signs of slowing down.

Manastu Space, an Indian collision avoidance and green propulsion startup, announced Tuesday that it closed a $3M pre-Series A led by Capital 2B, BIG Capital, and E2MC with participation from several other investors.

Manastu 101: The Mumbai-based company was founded in 2017 by a student team from Student Satellite Lab at IIT Bombay to develop a greener propulsion system for satellites.

• The company is working on developing and testing its thruster, which runs on a fuel called MS-289, which is a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and a blend of additives that it says will burn more cleanly than commonly used fuels.

• It’s also designing a collision avoidance system, which includes a thruster that can be incorporated into a satellite to provide maneuverability and deorbiting capabilities.

The company says it is using its pre-Series A funding to continue testing its propulsion system, including the first on-orbit tests and demonstrations. Looking ahead, the company has secured contracts with the Indian defense agency, French launch startup Latitude, and defense innovation group iDEX.

India’s space boom: India’s domestic space industry has been growing steadily for years, but there’s been a notable uptick in investment activity recently. India’s space stocks surged after the Chandrayaan-3 lander touched down on the lunar surface last month, and EO intelligence startup SatSure announced a $15M Series A last week in the wake of that landing.

There are 150+ space startups in the Indian market right now that have collectively raised upwards of $218M since 2014. The market is currently valued at ~$8B—roughly the same as the Japanese space industry—according to a report from consultancy Arthur D. Little that projects it will grow to $40B by 2040.

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China’s Galactic Energy Launches from the Sea

Chinese rocket startup Galactic Energy launched its Ceres-1 solid rocket from a mobile sea platform yesterday, becoming China’s first commercial rocket to achieve the feat.

The launch, which transported four IOT birds to LEO, took place off the coast of Haiyang in the Yellow Sea.

Sea launcher: With this launch, China has now completed five orbital solid rocket launches from barges at sea, including state-owned Long March 11 and Smart Dragon 3 missions. Tailored for solid rockets, the converted barges sidestep the challenges associated with cryogenic fueling.

Little Mermaid: The mission, which was nicknamed The Little Mermaid, was the ninth time Galactic Energy has launched Ceres-1, but the other launches took place from land. Ceres-1 is a 19-m tall, 1.4-m wide, four-stage rocket. The vehicle can deliver 400 kg to LEO, using solid propellant in its first three stages and liquid fuel in its fourth stage.

Galactic Energy is a part of China’s growing private rocket market, which includes Landspace, i-Space, OneSpace, Space Pioneer, and LinkSpace.

Sea Launch

Sea launches offer numerous benefits compared to land launches, Tom Marotta, CEO of US-based maritime launch The Spaceport Company previously told Payload. The pros include:

• Fewer environmental impacts

• No community disruptions and road closures

• The ability to sail to locations better suited for different orbits

“Being out at sea, we have fewer environmental impacts and can get approved for higher launch rates,” said Marotta.

The upshot: Launching at sea could give China greater flexibility and alleviate launch bottlenecks at a time when China’s space sector is growing at a rapid pace.

See You in DC!

Join us at our second Space Capitol event, where we will bring together emerging space companies and the government for a thought leadership and networking experience.

Space Opportunities

Here are the top government opportunities for space companies this week, as compiled by our partner TZero.

🛰️ SSC has released a draft RFP soliciting feedback for the Space Domain Awareness and Combat Power/Battle Management Command Control and Communications (HEMISPHERE) solicitation.

💥AFRL has released an ARA and is soliciting white papers for nuclear-related research including modeling and simulation of re-entry environments, materials characterization, nuclear explosion monitoring, and design, fab, and experimentation of nuclear delivery. Responses are due Oct. 1.

⚡DARPA is soliciting input for the ASSERT program, seeking single-events effects radiation testing of 3D heterogeneously integrated electronic components and circuits. Responses are due Sept. 15.

Additional opportunities and details can be found in the TZero Space Tracker, which is now offering new lower pricing and a one-month free trial.

In Other News

• JAXA is set to receive ¥10B (~$67.7M) to allocate to universities and companies building space tech.

• Stoke Space wrapped up wet dress rehearsals on its upper stage and is preparing to start static fires.

• Starship is fully stacked on the pad awaiting an FAA license to launch.

• Elon Musk borrowed $1B from SpaceX during his acquisition of X (formerly Twitter), the Wall Street Journal reports.

• Australia is launching a competition to name the lunar rover it’s manifesting on an Artemis mission (and we know how that goes…).

The View from Space

This graphic shows one of the last eight images taken of ESA’s Aeolus spacecraft as it tumbled through Earth’s atmosphere at the end of its nearly five-year mission.