New Delhi: California-based New Space Startup Catalyx Space has successfully conducted a drop test of its reentry capsule from an altitude of 4267 metres. The capsule was dropped from an aircraft over the Nevada Desert, close to Area 51. The remote location was chosen because capsules cannot reenter and land close to populated areas. The teams rehearsed the recovery operations as well. This is the second such drop test that Catalyx Space has conducted of its Reentry Capsule in June this year, from an altitude of 4876 metres. Catalyst Space has opted to set up its primary satellite manufacturing facility in Gujarat.
The reentry capsule is designed to provide democratic, low-cost access to space. The hardware is aimed primarily at hosting scientific payloads in a microgravity environment, with the conventional options being limited and expensive. The experiments either have to be packed into a satellite, or sent up to one of the operational orbital complexes, the International Space Station or the Chinese Tiangong Space Station. The re-entry capsule provides a safe and reliable alternative, with a rapid turnaround time and flexible payload interfaces. The reentry capsule, Rex was fully realised by Catalyx Space, which intends to conduct an orbital demonstration of the technology in the next few months.
Catalyx Space Hardware
The first spacecraft to reach orbit by Catalyx Space was the Space Rickshaw, that piggybacked to space on the SSLV-D3 flight on 16 August 2024. The idea here is to provide orbital infrastructure as a service, with the client having to worry only about their payload. Catalyx Space also developed a lightweight deployer for the satellite that brings down the cost of missions. For its reentry capsule, Catalyx Space developed the complex parachute system to shed the velocity during the descent through the atmosphere. The idea is to make it as easy to deploy a payload in space as it is to host an app in the cloud.