"Impulse Space is pitching a similar concept for satellites bound for geostationary orbit about 22,000 miles above Earth, compressing what is typically a months-long transit into a matter of hours. In the span of a week, the in-space propulsion startup announced a trio of deals aiming to unlock geostationary orbit (GEO) for commercial and defense users. That includes a demonstration mission with defense contractor Anduril planned for 2026; a transportation deal with GEO communications startup Astranis in 2027;"
"The common denominator across these missions is Helios, Impulse's methane-oxygen kick stage. A kick stage is essentially a small rocket engine system that rides on a larger rocket and then fires its own engine - in this case, a powerful engine called Deneb - to propel spacecraft to their final destination. Helios is meant to be the "same day" courier from LEO to higher altitude orbits."
Impulse Space aims to compress months-long LEO-to-GEO transits into hours using the Helios methane-oxygen kick stage and its Deneb engine. The company secured a 2026 demonstration with Anduril, a 2027 transportation deal with Astranis, and multi-launch support for Infinite Orbits’ servicing satellites starting in 2027. Helios rides on larger rockets and fires independently to deliver payloads to final orbits within hours, reducing months-long transit times. Rapid transit to GEO could speed commercial deployments and allow the Department of Defense faster maneuvering, despite GEO challenges like Van Allen belt radiation, communication latency, and station-keeping requirements.
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