DoD awards Orbital Operations up to $35M for cryogenic spacecraft demo

The U.S. Department of Defense awarded Orbital Operations up to $35 million on Oct. 23, 2026, under a prototype Other Transaction Agreement, a procurement tool the Pentagon uses to fund demonstrations with commercial firms, to fund a full-scale, in-orbit flight demonstration of Astraeus, the company’s cryogenic-maneuvering vehicle. Based in Long Beach, California, Orbital Operations is developing the vehicle to provide high-thrust, reusable propulsion for national security missions, responding to the Pentagon’s stated need for responsive orbital assets.

Astraeus provides launch-vehicle-class propulsion for on-orbit operations, using an onboard refrigeration system to keep liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen from boiling off so the vehicle can remain in orbit for years instead of the approximately one week a disposable stage typically offers. Astraeus is the company’s first vehicle, and its cryogenic propulsion architecture is central to its national-security mission. The vehicle runs on liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants and depends on an actively cooled cryogenic storage system. Schleuniger characterized Astraeus as a reusable third stage with dual-use flexibility, enabling dynamic orbital operations with both speed and range.

Orbital Operations states that Astraeus combines high thrust with high efficiency for rapid transit across the orbital domain, a performance level the company says has not been achieved before, with the ultimate goal of protecting American satellites from new threats. Schleuniger said military operators want a 48-hour response window, and the company aims to execute maneuvers within single-digit hours of receiving a command. After carrying payloads to higher orbits, Astraeus is built to return to low Earth orbit to refuel, and the same base vehicle can be configured for logistics, tactical, or refueling missions. Schleuniger drew a parallel to the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, an aircraft that for decades has hauled cargo, flown as a gunship, and refueled jets midair, and said Orbital Operations seeks that same versatility in orbit.

The company aims to bring to space the multiple roles the C-130 and its variants have fulfilled for decades, including cargo transport, gunship operations, and midair refueling. The company’s approximately 13-person team advanced from closing its seed round to conducting a full-pressure engine hot-fire in less than six months, with more hot-fires, refrigeration-cycle work, and qualification planned before flight. The startup secured a $7 million seed extension round led by DTX Ventures, which brought its total funding to approximately $16 million, with GoAhead Ventures and Solaris Ventures joining existing investors Initialized Capital, Harpoon Ventures, and TRAC VC. Before that, on Aug. 7, 2025, Orbital Operations disclosed $8.8 million in seed funding led by Initialized Capital, with Harpoon Ventures, DTX Ventures, Rebel Fund, TRAC VC, and Immad Akhund among the participating investors.

Schleuniger noted that further fundraising is probable, but maintained that the government award is designed to carry the company to its first flight. LeoLabs tracked Russia’s Cosmos 2612 as it shadowed ICEYE-X36, a U.S.-flagged radar satellite widely believed to supply imagery to Ukraine, with the Russian spacecraft closing to roughly 500 meters between Oct. 15 and 19, 2026, before drifting away. Schleuniger pointed to the close approach as evidence of the need for responsive orbital capabilities, though he noted that military demand for such assets predated the event. He also highlighted SPACECOM’s technology priorities for 2029 to 2033, which identify sustained space maneuver as a leading priority, as proof that the military already seeks such capabilities.

The company has stated that China and Russia are deploying satellites able to grapple, refuel, and maneuver freely, which it says makes an urgent case for a persistent, responsive defensive presence in orbit. “Space is now a contested environment,” Schleuniger told Payload in discussing the DoD award.

Orbital Operations anticipates a four-year period of testing, demonstration, and qualification, with the culminating Astraeus demo mission planned for the second quarter of 2029. Schleuniger and Chief Operating Officer Ross Doherty, the company’s founders, have more than 15 years of combined experience from NASA, SpaceX, Aerojet Rocketdyne, Blue Origin, and Relativity. Orbital Operations made its local debut at a Friday, Aug. 22, 2025 event in North Long Beach, hosted by Mayor Rex Richardson at RMD Group’s office, where Schleuniger and Doherty both addressed the gathering. Richardson welcomed the startup as the latest addition to the city’s rapidly expanding aerospace and advanced manufacturing hub in what is known as Space Beach, and the company is currently hiring engineers and other needed professionals to execute its plans.