Astranis

Astranis Space Technologies Corp. is a private American geostationary communications satellite operator and manufacturer headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded by chief executive officer John Gedmark and Chief Technical Officer Ryan McLinko.

Astranis Space Technologies Corp.
Astranis
TypePrivate
IndustrySatellite Internet
FoundedOctober 20, 2015 (2015-10-20)
Founders
  • John Gedmark
  • Ryan McLinko
Headquarters
San Francisco, California
,
U.S.
Key people
  • John Gedmark (CEO)
  • Ryan McLinko (CTO)
ProductsSmall geostationary communications satellites
Number of employees
250+ (2023)
Websitewww.astranis.com

In 2018, Astranis launched DemoSat-2, a prototype 3U cubesat to test the company's Software-Defined Radio (SDR) technology for its larger communications satellites.[1]

Astranis came out of stealth mode with their March 2018 announcement of a $13.5 million fundraising round to support their development of smaller geostationary communications satellites led by Andreessen Horowitz.,[2] marking the firm's first investment in a space company.[3]

In January 2019, Astranis announced their first commercial program, a partnership with Pacific Dataport, Inc. to triple the satellite internet capacity of Alaska.[4] The 350 kg satellite was successfully launched on April 30, 2023 onboard a Falcon Heavy along with ViaSat 3 Americas and Gravity Space's GS-1.[5] It is roughly an order of magnitude smaller than existing geostationary satellites.[6][7]

Astranis has raised over $350 million in venture capital and venture debt financing from Andreessen Horowitz, Venrock, BlackRock, and other investors. The company was part of the Winter 2016 cohort of the Y Combinator accelerator.[8]

History

Demonstration satellite

On January 12, 2018, Astranis flew its first satellite, “DemoSat 2,” on an Indian PSLV-XL rocket. DemoSat 2 was a 3U cubesat (10 cm x 10 cm x 30 cm; less than 3 kg) carrying a prototype of the company's software-defined radio.[1][9][10]

Block 1

Astranis's first MicroGEO spacecraft was leased in 2019 to Pacific Dataport, Inc., a subsidiary of Microcom formed in 2016 to provide broadband internet service to customers in Alaska.[11][12] The satellite, named Arcturus, had an original anticipated launch date of early 2022[13][14] but was delayed to April 2023. Following launch and vehicle separation, Astranis publicly confirmed communication with the satellite along with successful hardware deployments and battery charging.[15] In the following months, the company performed demonstrations of the spacecraft's communications, delivering up to 8.5 Gbps of data rate compared to the design specification of 7.5 Gbps, translating to about 20–25 Mbps per user.[16][12]

Astranis reported a failure in an externally supplied solar array drive assembly aboard Arcturus in July 2023, leaving the spacecraft with insufficient power to provide internet service to Alaska.[17] John Gedmark stated that no Astranis-built hardware failed on the spacecraft, and that the company may use the spacecraft as a communications testbed for testing "anti-jamming capabilities" for the U.S. Space Force. Service to Alaska is planned to be bridged in spring 2024 by UtilitySat, a spare spacecraft with a lower 3 Gbps of capacity, and fully restored by a replacement spacecraft in "early 2025".[18]

Block 2

In July 2021, SpaceNews reported that Astranis had ordered $30 million of long-lead spacecraft components for four MicroGEO spacecraft, then planned to be finished by the end of 2022. Astranis signed a launch contract with SpaceX in April 2022 for a dedicated Falcon 9 mission carrying the four "Block 2" spacecraft.[19]

Block 3

Block 3, consisting of five satellites, is planned to launch mid-2024.[20]

Future

A full replacement for Arcturus is planned to enter service in early 2025.[18] John Gedmark stated in April 2022 that Astranis plans to have "over 100 Astranis satellites in active service" by 2030.[21]

Funding

Astranis has raised over $350 million in venture financing.[22] They closed an $13.5 million Series A equity investment led by Andreessen Horowitz on March 1, 2018, and a $90 million Series B investment on February 13, 2020 led by Venrock and with continued participation from Andreessen Horowitz.[23] The Series B financing included $40 million of equity financing and $50 million of debt financing.[24] Astranis also raised a $250 million Series C financing round led by BlackRock in 2021.[25] Astranis was part of the Winter 2016 cohort of the Y Combinator accelerator.

Spacecraft
Launch Number Spacecraft Longitude Customer Status
12 January 2018,

PSLV-XL[1]

 — DemoSat-2 LEO Astranis Success
5 kg CubeSat carrying prototype software-defined radio payload.
1 May 2023,

Falcon Heavy[26]

 1 Arcturus / Aurora 4A 163°W[13] United StatesAlaska Pacific Dataport Out of service
First MicroGEO spacecraft, customer designation Aurora 4A. Launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy in April 2023, co-manifested with primary payload Viasat-3 Americas and Gravity Space GS-1. A defect in the spacecraft's solar array drive assemblies in early July 2023 left the spacecraft with insufficient power for its primary mission.[18] Spacecraft remains functional, with Astranis attempting to recover the spacecraft's solar arrays or repurpose it for secondary missions.[18]
Q4 2023,

Falcon 9[27]

 2–5 Andesat-1 Peru Andesat Under construction
Anuvu-1 United States Anuvu
Anuvu-2
UtilitySat United StatesAlaska Pacific Dataport
"Block 2" MicroGEO spacecraft, with upgraded lifetime and throughput performance.[28] Four spacecraft will be launched by a dedicated Falcon 9 mission directly to geostationary orbit.[21] Manifested are:
  • One of two spacecraft ordered by Grupo Andesat for "more than $90 million" to provide internet service to Peru.[29]
  • Two of eight spacecraft ordered by Anuvu (formerly Global Eagle) for maritime and aviation connectivity.[30]
  • UtilitySat, a versatile on-orbit spare planned to replace the failed Arcturus spacecraft until a dedicated replacement can be launched.[18]
Mid-2024[27] 6-10 Andesat-2 Peru Andesat Under construction
Apco-1 Mexico Apco Networks
Apco-2
Philippines Orbits Corp
unspecified
"Block 3" MicroGEO spacecraft. Manifested are:
  • Second of two Andesat spacecraft for service to Peru.[27]
  • Two spacecraft ordered by Apco Networks for service to Mexico.
  • One spacecraft ordered by Orbits Corp for service to the Philippines, capacity itself contracted to telecom provider HTechCorp.[27]

References
  1. "DemoSat 2". space.skyrocket.de.
  2. https://www.boldbusiness.com/digital/astranis-space-tech-to-provide-internet-access/; https://www.fastcompany.com/40537215/this-startup-astranis-says-it-has-the-most-efficient-plan-ever-for-bringing-broadband-to-billions; https://www.wired.com/story/can-these-small-satellites-solve-the-riddle-of-internet-from-space/; https://venturebeat.com/2018/03/01/andreessen-horowitz-leads-18-million-investment-in-satellite-startup-astranis/; https://fortune.com/2018/03/01/term-sheet-thursday-march-1/; https://www.businessinsider.com/astranis-raises-135-million-from-andreessen-horowitz-2018-3; https://www.geekwire.com/2018/13-5m-boost-astranis-unveils-big-plans-beam-internet-small-satellites/
  3. https://qz.com/1220073/astranis-andreesen-horowitzs-first-space-investment-is-an-internet-satellite/; https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2018/03/01/andreessen-horowitz-makes-its-first-space-investment-with-satellite-startup-astranis/#f40da4e7c3fa
  4. https://spacenews.com/astranis-lands-anchor-customer-for-its-first-small-geo-satellite/; https://www.geekwire.com/2019/astranis-pacific-dataport-team-satellite-broadband-access-alaska/; https://www.alaskajournal.com/2019-01-16/microcom-founder-launches-new-satellite-broadband-project
  5. "Astranis and Infinite Orbits Confirm Success on ViaSat-3 Launch". satellitetoday.com. May 1, 2023.
  6. "Astranis lands anchor customer for its first small GEO satellite". SpaceNews.com. January 16, 2019.
  7. "ViaSat 3 Americas, Asia, EMEA". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
  8. "Y Combinator Companies". www.ycombinator.com.
  9. "TechCrunch is now a part of Verizon Media".
  10. "Startup plans to provide broadband using small GEO satellites". March 2018.
  11. Brehmer, Elwood (16 January 2019). "Microcom founder launches new satellite broadband project". Alaska Journal of Commerce. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  12. Henry, Caleb (2019-01-16). "Astranis lands anchor customer for its first small GEO satellite". SpaceNews. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  13. "Application for Fixed Satellite Service by Astranis Bermuda Ltd. - Attachment Narrative" (PDF). Astranis Bermuda. FCC. 7 June 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  14. Sheetz, Michael (14 April 2021). "Astranis, with a new approach to satellite internet, raises $250 million from BlackRock and others". CNBC. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  15. @Astranis (May 1, 2023). "Arcturus Status" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. Sheetz, Michael (2023-05-24). "Astranis says its first internet satellite is working 'perfectly' as company prepares to bring coverage to Alaska". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  17. Sheetz, Michael (2023-07-21). "Astranis internet satellite malfunctions before beginning Alaska service, backup planned for spring". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  18. Sheetz, Michael (2023-07-21). "Astranis internet satellite malfunctions before beginning Alaska service, backup planned for spring". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  19. "Astranis Space Technologies Signs Contract with SpaceX for Dedicated Multi-Satellite Launch in 2023". www.businesswire.com. 2022-04-05. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  20. Sheetz, Michael (2023-07-11). "Astranis to bring satellite internet to 2 million people in the Philippines next year". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  21. "Astranis Space Technologies Signs Contract with SpaceX for Dedicated Multi-Satellite Launch in 2023". www.businesswire.com. 2022-04-05. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  22. Sheetz, Michael (2021-04-14). "Astranis, with a new approach to satellite internet, raises $250 million from BlackRock and others". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-06-15.
  23. https://www.wsj.com/articles/astranis-raises-capital-as-it-readies-first-commercial-satellite-launch-11581639044; https://satelliteprome.com/news/microsatellite-startup-astranis-raises-90m-to-power-internet-connectivity/; https://www.venturecapitaljournal.com/venrock-leads-90-mn-round-for-astranis/; https://techcrunch.com/2020/02/13/astranis-raises-90-million-for-its-next-gen-satellite-broadband-internet-service/; http://www.parabolicarc.com/2020/02/13/astranis-raises-90-million-round-led-by-venrock/; https://satnews.com/story.php?number=1571670765; https://www.satellitetoday.com/business/2020/02/13/microsatellite-startup-astranis-raises-90m-led-by-venrock/; https://www.law360.com/telecom/articles/1243834/internet-satellite-co-says-90m-will-help-it-launch-into-space
  24. https://spacenews.com/astranis-raises-90-million-in-debt-and-equity-ahead-of-first-launch/; https://pitchbook.com/newsletter/astranis-raises-90m-for-satellite-internet-in-alaska; https://smallsatnews.com/2020/02/13/90-million-for-astranis-to-support-the-launch-of-the-companys-first-satellite/
  25. Sheetz, Michael (2021-04-14). "Astranis, with a new approach to satellite internet, raises $250 million from BlackRock and others". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-06-15.
  26. "Arcturus (Aurora 4A)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  27. Sheetz, Michael (2023-07-11). "Astranis to bring satellite internet to 2 million people in the Philippines next year". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  28. Rainbow, Jason (2021-07-15). "Astranis accelerates production with four more small GEO satellites". SpaceNews. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  29. "Andesat and Astranis Sign Landmark Two-satellite Agreement to Expand Broadband Access in Peru". www.businesswire.com. 2021-12-07. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  30. Rainbow, Jason (2021-07-27). "Anuvu orders first satellites for small GEO mobility constellation". SpaceNews. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
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