Render of D-Orbit's D-Orbit’s General Expansion Architecture (GEA) spacecraft-servicing vehicle. Satellite life extension will be the first mission for GEA, which also is designed to relocate and repair satellites. Credit: D-Orbit
SAN FRANCISCO – Italian space logistics specialist D-Orbit will provide a series of launches aboard its ION Satellite Carrier for Japanese startup ArkEdge Space, under a contract announced July 8 in Japan.
“This is one of the most significant contracts D-Orbit has signed to date,” Matteo Andreas Lorenzoni, D-Orbit Orbital Access Business Unit director, told SpaceNews by email. “It represents real momentum in our Asia-Pacific expansion.”
D-Orbit will send ArkEdge satellites to sun-synchronous orbit in 2027 and 2028. The companies are not disclosing the number of launches.
“What matters most is the cadence. ArkEdge Space needs dependable, recurring access to orbit for its constellation programs,” Lorenzoni said. “That’s what this contract secures.”
