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Solstar Space Company

Location: Santa Fe, NM
Type: Industry (startup)
FO Projects: 91329
Outcome Category: Orbital deployment (Vigoride 7, Mar 30, 2026 — confirmed) + Gateway HALO contract (paused) + DoD adoption
Confidence: Confirmed (orbital flight, USASpending contracts, press coverage)
Total tracked government awards: ~$2.97M (NASA + DoD)
Last updated: Session 88, 2026-04-07

Summary

Solstar used FO New Shepard flights to validate commercial WiFi on suborbital vehicles. After FO, they pursued three parallel tracks: (1) Northrop Grumman contract for WiFi on Gateway HALO module (now paused — Gateway cancelled Mar 2026), (2) DoD adoption via USAF SBIRs ($2.65M), and (3) commercial orbital deployment via the Deke Space Communicator — which achieved first orbit on Vigoride 7/Transporter-16 on April 1, 2026. Solstar also signed a $15M three-year strategic agreement with Momentus (Oct 2025) for reciprocal communications and logistics services.

Timeline:

  • 2013–2019: FO tests on Blue Origin New Shepard sRLVs (TechPort 91329)
  • 2017: NASA SBIR Phase I for ISS utilization (NNX17CS53P, $125K)
  • 2018-07-18: Second successful WiFi-in-space demo on New Shepard; "second commercial Tweet from space" at 74.6 miles altitude
  • 2019: FO project closes out
  • Post-FO: Northrop Grumman selects Solstar to provide Wi-Fi for HALO module
  • 2021-04: USAF SBIR Phase I — Critical Data Relay (FA864921P1213, $50K)
  • 2022-11: USAF SBIR Phase I — Continuous spacecraft comms (FA864923P0396, $74K)
  • 2023-08: USAF SBIR Phase II — Continuous bi-directional spacecraft comms (FA864923P1097, $1.25M)
  • 2024-03: USAF SBIR Phase II — Wideband continuous comms terminal (FA864924P0480, $1.25M)
  • 2024-05: USAF SBIR Phase I — Radiation-hardened WiFi AP (FA864924P0897, $75K)
  • 2025-09: NASA SBIR Phase I — Lunar WiFi Access Point (LWIFI AP) (80NSSC25C0351, $149K)
  • 2025-10-13: $15M strategic agreement with Momentus — three-year reciprocal services deal
  • 2026-03-24: Gateway paused by NASA — pivot to $20B lunar surface base; HALO WiFi contract in limbo
  • 2026-03-30: Deke Space Communicator launched on Vigoride 7 / SpaceX Transporter-16 — first orbital demo; ISAM comms demonstration

TechPort Record: 91329

  • Title: Test of Satellite Communications Systems on-board Suborbital Platforms...
  • Program: Flight Opportunities (FO)
  • Period: 2013-08-01 to 2019-09-30
  • TRL: 5 → 6 (current: 6)
  • Lead Org: Solstar Space Company
  • TX: (TX05 communications area)
  • Outcome records: 1 × "Closed Out" (partner: null, 2019-03-01)
  • Library items: 2 — SpaceNews "Northrop Grumman taps Solstar for HALO Module Wi-Fi"; generic NASA link
  • Description highlights: FO-funded WiFi tests on New Shepard; CEO/COO quotes about commercial space WiFi; "internet infrastructure" framing for commercial space. COO: "if a company puts up a small research satellite, it can only talk with it once it passes over the ground station... Solstar's technology will allow access to the satellite at all times."

USASpending Awards

Award ID Agency Amount Period Purpose
NNX17CS53P NASA $124,900 2017 SBIR Phase I: ISS utilization
FA864921P1213 USAF $49,900 2021 Phase I: Critical Data Relay (CritDR)
FA864923P0396 USAF $74,100 2022-2023 Phase I: Continuous spacecraft comms
FA864923P1097 USAF $1,250,000 2023-2025 Phase II: Continuous bi-directional spacecraft comms
FA864924P0480 USAF $1,250,000 2024-2025 Phase II: Wideband continuous comms terminal
FA864924P0897 USAF $74,800 2024 Phase I: Radiation-hardened WiFi AP
80NSSC25C0351 NASA $149,300 2025-2026 SBIR Phase I: Lunar WiFi Access Point (LWIFI AP)

Total tracked government awards: ~$2.97M (NASA $274K, DoD $2.70M)
Note: DoD (primarily USAF/SpaceWERX) is now the primary government customer, not NASA.

Downstream Impact

Orbital deployment — CONFIRMED (Mar 30, 2026): The Deke Space Communicator — a space-hardened, deck-of-cards-sized bi-directional narrowband data relay — launched on Momentus Vigoride 7 (SpaceX Transporter-16, March 30, 2026). This is Solstar's first orbital demonstration, 7 years after FO project closeout. The Deke integrates with spacecraft TT&C systems for continuous internet-based monitoring and provides Space WiFi for proximity operations. It routes signals through Iridium's constellation for 24/7 connectivity at any orbital point. This is also an ISAM (In-Space Assembly and Manufacturing) demonstration mission — Momentus tasked Solstar specifically for comms support during ISAM ops.

$15M Momentus partnership (Oct 2025): Three-year reciprocal services agreement — Solstar provides comms, Momentus provides logistics and deployment. Joint targets: ISTAR, ISAM, and RPOD missions. This is a major scale-up from Solstar's previous sub-$2M government SBIR profile.

Gateway HALO contract — PAUSED (Mar 2026): Northrop Grumman had selected Solstar for HALO WiFi, but NASA cancelled Gateway on March 24, 2026, pivoting to a $20B lunar surface base (2029-2036). HALO module was already at Northrop's Gilbert, AZ facility for outfitting. Solstar's HALO contract is now in limbo. However, the September 2025 NASA SBIR for Lunar WiFi Access Point (LWIFI AP) suggests Solstar is already pivoting toward surface WiFi applications.

DoD adoption: USAF/SpaceWERX is the primary customer with $2.65M across 4 SBIRs (two Phase II at $1.25M each). The progression from CritDR Phase I ($50K, 2021) to dual Phase IIs ($2.5M, 2023-2024) shows textbook SBIR ladder maturation for DoD space comms.

Key Insights

  1. TRL5→6 is misleading. The modest TRL gain and "Closed Out" outcome status completely mask $2.97M in follow-on contracts, a $15M commercial partnership, and first orbital deployment. Another example of FO impact invisible in structured fields.

  2. Gateway cancellation is a test case. Solstar's HALO contract was their headline infusion story. With Gateway paused, the question is whether the Lunar WiFi SBIR (LWIFI AP) and lunar surface base pivot can replace it. The Sep 2025 SBIR timing (6 months before Gateway cancellation) suggests NASA may have seen this coming.

  3. DoD is the real customer. $2.65M from USAF vs. $274K from NASA. The FO→DoD pathway is stronger than the FO→NASA mission pathway for Solstar. This mirrors CDI, Saber, SpaceWorks, and other FO companies where DoD became the primary revenue source.

  4. Vigoride 7 co-passengers are notable: DARPA, Space Force, Orbit Fab, CisLunar Industries, Portal Space Systems — Solstar is now in the same mission manifests as other FO-backed companies (CisLunar 158519).

Impact Chain (updated Session 32)

FO suborbital WiFi tests (2013-2019): TRL 5→6
         ↓
NASA SBIR (2017): ISS utilization concept ($125K)
         ↓
Gateway HALO contract: Northrop Grumman selected Solstar for WiFi (now PAUSED — Gateway cancelled Mar 2026)
         ↓
USAF SBIRs (2021-2024): CritDR → continuous comms → wideband terminal ($2.65M)
         ↓
$15M Momentus partnership (Oct 2025): reciprocal services deal
         ↓
Orbital deployment (Apr 2026): Deke Space Communicator on Vigoride 7 / Transporter-16
         ↓
Lunar WiFi pivot (Sep 2025): NASA SBIR for LWIFI AP — positioning for surface base

Session 58 Update (2026-04-07)

Deke On-Orbit Status — Early Returns Positive

Per Santa Fe New Mexican (Apr 2026), founder Brian Barnett confirmed: - Solar array deployed successfully - Deke powered up and operational during initial checkout - System supplying power to spacecraft - Testing under "multiple scenarios and conditions" planned over the next year - Three strategic customers during this mission — one is NASA - First time Solstar tech used for telemetry, tracking, and communications (TT&C) applications

Vigoride 7 mission context: 10 government and commercial payloads, including demos for autonomous RPO, ISAM, advanced comms, high-performance computing. Mission contracts include ~$4.2M DARPA + ~$1.9M SpaceWERX + NASA JSC + NASA Armstrong.

Momentus Financial Crisis — Risk to $15M Partnership

CRITICAL (Session 58): Momentus (MNTS) faces severe financial distress. (See Session 88 update below for resolution.)

Session 88 Update (2026-04-07)

Momentus Survived — Reverse Split + Major FO Contracts

SIGNIFICANT CORRECTION: The Session 58 assessment of Momentus at 75% bankruptcy probability was too pessimistic. Momentus survived through:

  1. 1-for-17.85 reverse stock split effective December 17, 2025 — reduced shares from ~25M to ~1.4M, bringing bid price to ~$12.86 and restoring Nasdaq compliance.
  2. Substantial NASA Flight Opportunities contracts discovered via USASpending:
Award ID Amount Period Description
80AFRC25FA053 $5.15M 2025-09 to 2028-04 COSMIC (Crystallization) payload integration & flight
80AFRC25FA063 $2.09M 2025-09 to 2028-04 JUNO Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine integration & flight
FA254125CB052 $1.86M 2025-06 to 2027-01 DoD/Air Force space sustainment & maneuver framework
80AFRC25FA059 $395.8K 2025-09 to 2026-03 Solar Sail mission concepts
80AFRC25FA041 $107.6K 2025-06 to 2025-07 FLY Foundational Robots mission concepts
HQ085926FE732 $500 2025-12 to 2035-12 MDA SHIELD initial order (Golden Dome)

Total new Momentus contracts: ~$9.6M — dominated by NASA Armstrong (FO program!) contracts. The 80AFRC prefix = NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center = Flight Opportunities. Momentus is becoming a primary FO flight provider, not just Solstar's partner.

  1. Vigoride 7 deployed successfully (March 30, 2026): 1.6-kW solar arrays deployed, command uplink & telemetry downlink established at ~500 km altitude. 10 payloads hosted. 300 kg capacity, 3 kW peak power.

  2. Vigoride 8 fully manifested for early 2027 with two FO-funded complex payloads. Vigoride 9 integration already underway.

Impact on Solstar Assessment

The Momentus survival de-risks the $15M partnership: - Momentus now has ~$9.6M in government contracts (plus the $15M Solstar deal), providing revenue runway - Vigoride 8 (2027) will provide Solstar's second orbital demo, extending the 1-year Deke V7 campaign - MDA SHIELD ($500 initial, but 10-year IDIQ through 2035) signals defense sector entry — same trajectory as Solstar's own DoD pivot

Revised assessment: The "Momentus folds" scenario from Session 58 is unlikely given $9.6M in new contracts and Nasdaq compliance restoration. Both Solstar and Momentus are now positioned in the FO→orbit pipeline. The Deke year-long mission (vs. minutes/hours on New Shepard) represents a 7-year maturation arc from FO suborbital tests (2013-2019) to persistent orbital operations (2026+).

Deke On-Orbit — 1 Week In

As of April 7 (1 week post-launch): - Solar array, power, TT&C all operational - Year-long mission duration planned (first long-duration Solstar deployment) - Routing signals through Iridium constellation for 24/7 connectivity at any orbital point - ISAM communications demonstration active

No detailed on-orbit performance metrics published yet. Next meaningful data point: ~30 days post-launch (late April) when initial operational reports should be available.

No New Solstar Contracts

No new USASpending awards for Solstar since LWIFI AP (Sep 2025, $149K). DoD SBIRs ($2.65M) and LWIFI AP remain the active pipeline. LWIFI AP Phase I (6-month design) should complete by ~March 2026 — Phase II decision pending.

Sources

  • TechPort 91329 (live API, 2026-04-06)
  • SpaceNews: "Northrop Grumman taps Solstar for HALO Module Wi-Fi" (linked from TechPort library)
  • SpaceNews: "Momentus and Solstar to offer on-demand communications for Vigoride" (Mar 2025)
  • Momentus investor PR: Vigoride 7 launch on Transporter-16 (Mar 30, 2026)
  • Momentus investor PR: Reverse stock split announcement (Dec 15, 2025)
  • Santa Fe New Mexican: "Early returns are good for space communicator developed by Santa Fe company" (Apr 2026)
  • Santa Fe New Mexican: "Device from Santa Fe-based Solstar Space Co. launches into orbit" (Apr 2026)
  • Momentus investor PR: $15M agreement with Solstar (Oct 13, 2025)
  • USASpending.gov awards for Momentus Space LLC (queried 2026-04-07)
  • USASpending.gov awards for Solstar (queried 2026-04-07)
  • NASA: Gateway paused announcement (Mar 24, 2026)