Hello fellow space enthusiasts,

Q4 is here, and what a transformative year it’s been for Space Machines Company so far. We are demonstrating that Australia is establishing itself as a formidable force in the global space arena through strategic partnerships and technical innovation.

This quarter, we have focused on building the technical foundations for scalable, sustainable space infrastructure. The work we are doing now positions us for our ambitious 2026 spacecraft launch.

Key milestones since our last update:

• First hard-hat visit at our Optimus Factory (OF-01), showcasing the manufacturing facility that will produce Optimus Viper Rapid Response Vehicles
• Successful completion of our in-house Scintilla propulsion engine
• Continued development of Solstice OS, our spacecraft mission planning and satellite tasking platform
• George and I shared our vision in our first podcast together

Enjoy our updates below. 🚀

Raj

Australia’s space ‘MacGyver’ sees uptick in demand: Raj and George, our co-founders, told InnovationAus that international demand is rising for affordable, highly manoeuvrable spacecraft. They explained that our OF-01 facility will meet this need with fast, low-cost production. Read the full article here. 

We did to rocket engines what Watney did to potatoes: Our CEO, Raj, recently shared exciting insights on LinkedIn about the in-house production of Space Machines’ Scintilla propulsion engine. He highlighted the company’s key ingredients and capabilities that make this possible, and revealed Australia's secret weapon. Read more about it here.

See our recently released video on Scintilla, below.

AuManufacturing Podcast: George and Raj sat down with AuManufacturing to talk about what they learned from the maiden Optimus flight last year, why they’ve chosen to build a business around the need to manoeuvre rapidly at low cost in orbit, what Australian space manufacturers’ collective superpower must be. Listen here.

SMC x NSW Government partnership: Space Machines Company recently announced its partnership with the NSW Government to establish a major space manufacturing hub in Western Sydney's Bradfield City. SMC will begin high-value manufacturing projects at the Advanced Manufacturing Readiness Facility (AMRF) this year. Read here.

OF-01 facility visit: Our inaugural hard-hat visit to the Optimus Factory in August, attended by Hon Dr Andrew Charlton MP, represented a pivotal moment for Australia's independent space capabilities.

iLaunch Trailblazer CSIRO 3D printing Scintilla:

Space Machines Company and CSIRO successfully produced the nation's first bimetal rocket thruster using 3D metal printing at the Lab22 facility. This cutting-edge thruster, funded by the iLAuNCH program, will power SMC's Australian-made Optimus Viper spacecraft for on-orbit servicing. Read here. 

Previewing Solstice OS:

SMC has debuted Solstice OS, an AI-driven distributed orbital network operating system, at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) this week in Sydney. Traditional satellite operations require months of planning and multiple layers of engineers for basic missions. Solstice OS transforms this complexity into a five-minute mission experience. Check out a video describing the intent behind the system and its development journey at the link below.

We had a frenetic end to September / start of October, with multiple displays at the 76th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Sydney.

Over five days, at our three locations (plus multiple meeting rooms and other venues, including our facility in Botany) we had hundreds of conversations about and demonstrations of Optimus Viper and Solstice OS.

There were several exciting announcements and agreements signed, including:

🇬🇧 🇦🇺 SMC has been awarded two projects in the AU-UK Space Bridge

Under the UK Space Agency's International Bilateral Fund, these collaborations represent significant steps forward in advancing space sustainability and orbital operations capabilities between Australia and the UK.

Read more here.

🇰🇷 🇦🇺 SMC and Perigee strategic partnership to develop a Kickstage

This collaboration represents a significant milestone in Indo-Pacific space cooperation, unlocking GEO access capabilities for our Optimus Viper fleet.

Read more here.

🇨🇦 🇦🇺 SMC and Reaction Dynamics sign MOU to explore responsive launch capabilities

This partnership represents a significant milestone in building a Canada–Australia space bridge, enabling unprecedented responsiveness for national security, civilian and commercial customers across both nations.

Read more here.

🇮🇳 🇦🇺 MOUs signed in relation to the Space MAITRI mission:

• Macquarie University Partnership - Advanced Optical Systems For Eclipse Conditions
• OrbitAID Aerospace Partnership - Ground Fuelling Services and Port For In-Orbit Refuelling
• University of Sydney Initiative - Space Vibration Research and Testing Facility

Read more here.

We are excited to announce our participation in SXSW Sydney this year!

Be sure to catch our panel "Space: Australia’s New Sporting Arena", featuring Raj and industry veterans Anne Bettens from Deneb Space, Carl Seubert from SmartSat CRC and moderated by SMC brand ambassador, cricket-great Steve Waugh.

We'll be discussing how Australia can extend the have-a-go spirit and oversized presence we have in global sports, into a position of leadership in the space industry.

ICC Sydney - Pyrmont Theatre

Monday, October 13

1:15 pm–2:15 pm

Info and tickets here.