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SpinLaunch, the CA-based startup best known for its development of a kinetic launch system, has been working on satcom technology since 2020—under a unit later called Meridian Space. As of today, those business lines are going their separate ways. “SpinLaunch and Meridian Space are separating into two independent companies,” Meridian Space CEO Massimiliano Ladovaz told Payload. “Meridian will carry forward the satcom infrastructure business…SpinLaunch will continue to build on its vision for a lower-cost approach to launch, with further applications in hypersonics to support the Golden Dome program and in the lunar economy.” **Call me maybe:** The split comes just weeks before Meridian’s first in-space demo, which is expected to launch on SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare NET Oct. 1. The sat aims to demonstrate the first customer link of Meridian’s in-house-developed reflect-array technology, which company officials say uses less power than existing satcom payloads. With less power and space needed to operate and house the antenna, Meridian officials believe the company can fly satellites that are lighter and smaller than other satcom sats in the market—and pass those savings onto customers. “Power is the thing that you want to preserve in space,” Ladovaz told Payload. “[If] you can deliver very high capacity, very flexibly, at a fraction of the power…then the satellites can be very small, and therefore, you can launch them in fewer launches.” Meridian’s long-term goal is to fly its reflect-array antenna on flat satellite buses, making the deployment of a full 250+-sat-constellation possible on just one dedicated launch. In the shorter term, however, Meridian is offering customers the ability to fly the payload on traditional cubesat buses—under a program called Meridian Express, which could be ready to launch next year. **Go fast, go alone:** Meridian is actively working on signing its first customers, according to Ladovaz. The company is targeting sovereign governments, regional operators, and telecom companies who want to own and operate a satcom network independently. At a time when those wanting to own their own satcom networks are forced to either sign on to global networks like SpaceX Starlink or Amazon Leo, or spend potentially billions to build their own, Meridian aims to offer customers a third path. Meridian’s technology is designed to be built easily by partners. So while Meridian has signed a deal to build its first batch of sats on NanoAvionics buses, the tech opens the door for sovereign-satcom systems to be built in any country a future customer might want. “This is about ownership, control, and the fact that we sell custom-made systems to customers,” Ladovaz told Payload. “We can build a system for less than a billion dollars. That includes the space segment, launch, and ground.” **To the Moon:** SpinLaunch will share more details about its “leadership, vision, and plans in the near future,” according to Ladovaz. However, the company was awarded a patent last year—covering a kinetic launcher “anchored on to a planetary body with a rarified atmosphere…”—suggesting SpinLaunch’s future may lie off-world, sending payloads from the Moon back to Earth, or further into deep space. Related Stories Business • International • Startups ## Nebex Partners with Thrusters Unlimited to Unlock $700M for Mexico’s Space Ecosystem The capital will fund EO, telecoms and other strategic capabilities, according to Nebex. Europe • Launch ## Skyrora Shifts Orbital Launch Timeline to 2030 First-mover advantage isn’t all it’s cracked up to be—at least, that’s the thought process for UK launcher Skyrora. Launch • Technology ## Transporter-18 Tests the Building Blocks of Orbital Data Centers Few rideshares come with a theme, but SpaceX’s Transporter-18 had one: getting power to compute in orbit. Launch ## Starship Reaches Orbit on 14th Test Flight After reaching orbit, Starship deployed 26 V3 Starlink sats over about 30 minutes using its ‘Pez dispenser’ system. More Stories Startups • Technology ## Star Catcher’s Orbital Power-Beaming Demo is Ready for Launch Victoria WoodburnSeptember 28, 2026September 27, 2026 Share * Twitter * Linkedin * Facebook * Copy * Email **Protostar during final assembly. Image: Star Catcher** Last fall, Star Catcher beamed power down a runway in Florida. Now, the company wants to try the same thing between two spacecraft moving at roughly 27,000 km/h. The company announced today that its prototype power node—dubbed Protostar—is prepped for SpaceX’s Transporter-18 launch, launching NET Oct. 1. Protostar will attempt to beam power between two untethered spacecraft for the first time—a critical step to scale Star Catcher’s orbital energy-infrastructure ambitions. The team aims to get an operational grid in orbit by the end of the decade. Keep reading Load More

Meridian Space has split from kinetic launch technology developer SpinLaunch as it seeks more funding to develop flat satellites it says could launch up to 250 at a time on a Falcon 9, enough for global broadband coverage.

La startup américaine veut construire une centrifugeuse géante pour lancer des satellites en orbite. Une idée très sérieuse, financée notamment par Google et Airbus.

YouTube video by GREAT SPACEX

YouTube video by GREAT SPACEX

YouTube video by Eager Space

YouTube video by GREAT SPACEX

SpinLaunch, the California-based space startup once best known for trying to fling satellites into orbit with a giant centrifuge, has...

In this episode, David Ariosto speaks with SpinLaunch CEO Massi Ladovaz. They discuss what attracted Ladovaz to reimagining how to launch spacecraft, the changing needs and challenges of building constellations for a global space community, and adapting to customer demands for sovereignty amid shifting geopolitical situations. Sponsored by Arrow Electronics is a Fortune 500-ranked distributor of electronic components and enterprise computing products that helps thousands of leading manufacturers and service providers turn technology ideas into market-ready solutions.

69 likes, 2 comments - ghar.organization on May 16, 2026: "SpinLaunch is an American space technology company developing a radical kinetic space launch system designed to hurl satellites into orbit us...

YouTube video by SpinLaunch