Space-tech startup Orbitt Space has secured $1 million in a pre-seed funding round. Pi Ventures headed the investor's list for the Ahmedabad, India firm, followed by IIMA Ventures. Orbitt will use the capital to accelerate the design and development of its proprietary electric propulsion and avionics systems for ultra-low Earth orbit, or ULEO, the transition zone below 155 miles altitude.
Founders Christopher Parmar and Anupam Kumar worked as scientists and engineers for the Indian Space Research Organization, which manages and develops India's space program. It's currently planning orbital missions targeting Venus, Mars and the moon, with a manned moon mission to be scheduled by 2040.
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ULEO is a largely untapped orbital layer due to high atmospheric drag and fuel constraints. Satellites capable of navigating this realm have potentially lucrative applications in communications and weather imaging. Orbitt wants to build spacecraft that overcome these headwinds with air-breathing electric propulsion systems that use residual atmospheric gases as propellants. Parmar and Kumar believe their proprietary tech will allow satellites to remain sky bound in this space layer for five to seven years.
The satellite traffic jam in low Earth orbit, or LEO, the zone up to 1,240 miles, is reaching critical limits. The European Space Agency warns that over 40,000 objects are being tracked in this layer, as well as 1.2 million smaller debris fragments. Collision danger is increasing exponentially in these crowded skies, risking destruction of expensive systems and the potential for debris to hit the ground before it burns up.
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Parmar touted the benefits of the startup, saying, "ULEO is the cleanest and most strategic orbit around Earth, yet it has remained inaccessible until now. Our electric propulsion system will change that, enabling satellites to operate longer missions at low altitudes while delivering advanced imaging and data capabilities without contributing to orbital pollution. With this funding, we take our first step toward making sustainable, fuel-free satellite operations a reality."
In the first stage, Orbitt wants to build a team of scientists and engineers, and test a prototype to validate the space tech. IIMA Ventures has seeded two other Ahmedabad startups and there are no guarantees that funding will continue if more lucrative space tech emerges from their investments.
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Orbitt wants to demonstrate the tech's potential through in-orbit demonstrations in later phases and roll out commercial production of a ULEO satellite system. However, the startup space chasing this segment has grown more crowded, with UK's NewOrbit Space and India's Bellatrix Aerospace well along in their research, development and potential production.
NewOrbit is testing its tech in ground-based vacuum chambers but has yet to schedule an in-orbit demonstration. It was awarded a contract from the European Space Agency last year to "advance development of air-breathing thrusters and cathodes." Closer to Orbitt's home, Bellatrix showed off its propulsion tech at the Bengaluru Space Expo 2024 last September and hopes to launch its first satellite by 2026.
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