The Exploration Company has published an update on the progress of its subscale Mission Possible demonstrator, which the company expects to launch later this year.
Mission Possible is the second subscale demonstrator developed by The Exploration Company and will be the first to carry customer payloads. The vehicle will have a diameter of 2.5 metres in contrast to the 4-metre diameter of the full-sized Nyx Earth spacecraft. It will not feature a service module, and as a result, its mission to low Earth orbit will be short.
According to the Mission Possible Payload User’s Guide, once in low Earth orbit, the capsule will remain attached to the launch vehicle for up to two hours. During this time, up to 300 kilograms of customer payloads will experience at least 30 minutes of uninterrupted microgravity. After the launch vehicle has performed its deorbit burn, the capsule will be separated to proceed with its reentry phase on its own. It will then perform several reorientation maneuvers using its onboard propulsion system before reorienting its heat shield for reentry. Once the capsule has been sufficiently slowed by atmospheric braking, the parachute system will be deployed, and the vehicle will splash down in the ocean.
In a February 29 LinkedIn post, The Exploration Company revealed that the Mission Possible capsule’s tank skids had been integrated and that the team was almost finished with the integration of the avionics bay. Most of the panels that will enclose the delicate systems within have been covered with thermal protection that will be vital during the re-entry phase. Finally, the company revealed that it was finalizing the electric tests of the propulsion system.
While work continues on the Mission Possible capsule, The Exploration Company is preparing for the launch of its Bikini demonstrator. This small passive re-entry demonstrator had initially been scheduled to be launched aboard the maiden Ariane 6 mission in 2023. However, after the flight was delayed to 2024, the company began to look elsewhere. In September 2023, it was announced that the Bikini demonstrator would be launched aboard an ISRO PSLV rideshare mission. The flight is expected to occur sometime this month, although no specific date has yet been announced.
Following the launch of the two demonstrator missions this year, The Exploration Company expects to launch the maiden flight of a full-scale Nyx spacecraft in 2026.
