Kreios Space's Air-Breathing Electric Propulsion system is designed to collect atmospheric particles and convert them into plasma to generate continuous thrust. Credit: Kreios Space
SAN FRANCISCO – Spanish startup Kreios Space announced plans Aug. 4 to conduct the first very low Earth orbit (VLEO) demonstration of its air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) in a Kongsberg NanoAvionics microsatellite bus.
“Partnering with NanoAvionics in our first in-orbit flight provides us with a satellite bus and market-leading experience necessary to allow us to test our new technology in confidence,” Kreios CEO Adrián Senar said in a statement.
Senar declined to comment on the timing of the flight. Kreios’ website says the “the first-ever ABEP-based VLEO mission,” will occur in 2027 with a second flight in 2028.
Senar co-founded Kreios in 2021 with five aerospace engineering classmates from the Polytechnic School of Catalonia to develop ABEP to enable satellites to remain at an orbital altitude of about 200 kilometers. ABEP is designed to collect atmospheric gases including oxygen and nitrogen to serve as propellant for electric thrusters.
