Kreios Space partners with NanoAvionics for first VLEO propulsion demo
Kreios Space · NanoAvionics
Kreios Space will fly its air-breathing electric propulsion system on a NanoAvionics satellite bus in 2027.
updates
- 2026-08-09score 3 → 4Space.com's Aug 9 writeup independently covers the same Aug 4 Kreios/NanoAvionics VLEO propulsion demo announcement already led by SpaceNews (trade) and corroborated by Payload (trade); this is a mainstream outlet picking up the story beyond the lead, adding on-record quotes from Kreios CEO Adrian Senar and Kongsberg NanoAvionics CEO Atle Woello not present in the existing sources.
what happened
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) system, using a Kongsberg NanoAvionics MP42 microsatellite bus, per SpaceNews. Missions are scheduled for 2027 and 2028; the satellite will carry an optical payload capturing sub-meter resolution imagery while validating the ABEP system, which collects atmospheric gases as propellant to let satellites operate at around 200 km altitude without onboard propellant.
why it matters
ABEP is still an unproven technology, but if it works it would let EO and other satellites hold very low orbits, where imaging resolution improves and end-of-life objects deorbit naturally, without carrying conventional propellant. A named bus supplier and a firm demo timeline give EO constellation designers a concrete data point on when VLEO propulsion might become commercially available, alongside rival efforts from ESA, Viridian Space and India's Orbitt Space.
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- Kreios Space, NanoAvionics
- Category
- partnership
- Impact
- notable
- SNR
- 4 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-08-04
- Published
- 2026-08-04 05:24 UTC