Impulse Space

Impulse Space is a space logistics company that provides in-space transportation services for payloads in the inner solar system. Founded in 2021 by Tom Mueller, a founding employee of SpaceX, Impulse Space develops orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs) designed to efficiently deliver satellites and other payloads to custom orbits beyond their initial drop-off points.

The company's flagship vehicle, Mira, is a 650-pound spacecraft optimized for maximizing delta-V capability, enabling it to transport payloads to various orbits in low Earth orbit (LEO). In January 2024, Impulse Space unveiled a larger vehicle called Helios that would serve as a high-energy kick stage capable of bypassing geostationary transfer orbit and taking payloads of up to five tons directly to geostationary orbit. The company also had plans to offer transportation services to the moon and Mars using more powerful propulsion systems like Rigel.

In November 2023, Impulse Space conducted its first orbital mission, LEO Express-1, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare flight, demonstrating Mira's capabilities, including payload delivery, hosting, orbital maneuvering, and atmospheric re-entry.

The company had plans to land a commercial payload on Mars in collaboration with Relativity Space in 2026.

Key customers and partnerships

Impulse Space has secured various partnerships to showcase its orbital transfer vehicle capabilities. One notable collaboration is with Orbit Fab since May 2023, where Impulse's Mira spacecraft serves as a hosting platform for Orbit Fab's fuel depot in 2025, attempting to refuel a US Space Force satellite in orbit.

The company also partnered with Relativity Space in July 2022 for its first commercial mission to Mars, scheduled for launch in 2026. Under the exclusive agreement until 2029, Relativity's Terran R rocket would deliver Impulse’s Mars Cruise Vehicle and Mars Lander on a trans-Mars injection orbit, with the lander propulsively landing on the Martian surface.

The company partnered with HEO in February 2024 to launch HEO’s in-space imager, HOLMES-007, onboard a Mira OTV as part of the LEO Express-2 mission expected for November 2024. In August 2024, Impulse Space partnered with Exolaunch to develop its GEO Rideshare Program, using its Helios and Mira vehicles. The rideshare’s first mission was scheduled for 2027. The company also partnered with Space Network Services in September 2024 for its GEO rideshare services to launch six satellites using Impulse's Helios kick stage and the Mira vehicle.

In October 2024, Impulse Space secured a contract from the US Space Force, to deploy its Helios and Mira vehicles for space surveillance missions in 2026. Following this, in the same month, Impulse Space partnered with Anduril Industries to integrate Anduril’s Lattice AI-enabled software platform with Impulse's Mira OTV, to develop advanced in-space maneuvering capabilities for military operations. In November 2024, Impulse Space was among 19 companies chosen for the Space Development Agency's Hybrid Acquisition for the Proliferated Low Earth Orbit (HALO) Program. During the same month, Impulse Space partnered with SpaceX to secure three Falcon 9 launches for its Helios transfer vehicle.