Space infrastructure developer Redwire is building a very low Earth Orbit satellite at its facility in Belgium using a design it plans to develop by participating in the European Space Agency’s Skimsat VLEO mission.
Called Phantom, the new spacecraft will be built for wide-ranging space missions, including intelligence and Earth science, the Jacksonville, Florida-based company said in a statement Monday.
The announcement follows Redwire’s disclosure in March that it is developing a VLEO spacecraft stateside called SabreSat. With the project, Redwire Chairman and CEO Peter Cannito said the company seeks to level up from components supply to spacecraft delivery.
Cannito described the development of VLEO capabilities as an exciting, trailblazing effort. “We believe that VLEO will be a critical domain for the future of defense and intelligence operations, and we are proud to be leading the way in bringing this untapped orbit from concept to reality,” he said in a statement announcing the Phantom.
Redwire is partnered with the U.K.’s Thales Alenia Space in the ESA’s Skimsat mission that seeks to boost satellite sustainability and mission capability while minimizing spacecraft size and mission cost.