Frequently Asked
Questions

Satelyx is a space mission integrator for IOD/IOV. If you have hardware that needs flight heritage, we design the validation campaign, integrate your payload, operate the mission, and deliver the evidence you need for adoption. Successful hardware becomes a catalog capability with flight evidence, known interfaces, real constraints, and a reuse path for future missions. Read the full story of why we built Satelyx.

Rideshare gives you a ride. CubeSat hosting gives you a slot. We give you a mission. That means power, thermal management, communications, data handling, and full operations support, all designed around what your payload actually needs. We don’t just co-manifest payloads on the same bus. We integrate partner technologies into coordinated missions where components are validated as part of a working system. That’s the difference between sharing a launch vehicle and running a real validation campaign.

Agile Prime is our model for turning IOD/IOV into reusable infrastructure. We partner with technology developers, prove their systems in orbit, document the evidence, and turn successful hardware into catalog capabilities that can be reused on future missions. Each mission strengthens the next one: more flight evidence, clearer interfaces, lower integration risk, and faster deployment. We do not just host payloads or sell slots. We run the mission path that moves hardware from validation to adoption. Deep dive: why space needs reusable mission integration.

Satelyx is built around a partnership model because the catalog compounds only when good technologies get to orbit and become reusable. You gain flight evidence and a path to adoption. Satelyx gains a stronger catalog: proven capabilities with known interfaces, real constraints, and reuse paths. We are not trying to maximize a single transaction. We are building the deployment layer that makes future missions faster, lower risk, and easier to buy.

When your hardware is validated in orbit, it can become a catalog capability. A catalog entry is not just a name on a parts list. It includes flight evidence, interface data, operational constraints, and the practical reuse path for future missions. The catalog compounds over time: the more we fly, the more known building blocks we have, and the faster future missions can move from requirement to deployment.

Typically 6 to 12 months from initial conversation to launch, depending on payload complexity and mission requirements. The process starts with you sharing your payload specs in any format. We respond within 48 hours. From there, we design the mission architecture, agree on integration milestones, and move into build and integration. Every mission is different, but the timeline is measured in months, not years.

We work with hardware across several verticals: propulsion systems (electric, chemical, novel), sensors and imaging systems, communications modules (D2D, IoT, SDR), AI and edge compute hardware, and more. We fly everything from early experimental payloads that need their first time in orbit to mission-critical systems requiring redundancy and rigorous qualification. Our current platform, VLEO-1, supports payloads up to approximately 8 kg with around 50W of dedicated power. For larger or more complex requirements, we design and fly microsatellites in the 100-300 kg class across multiple orbital regimes. If your payload doesn’t fit a standard IOD slot, we architect a dedicated mission around what you need, including custom platform configurations, higher power budgets, and specialized orbits.

VLEO-1 is our first Satelyx-led catalog validation mission, launching Q3/Q4 2027. It’s a 100kg-class sun-synchronous platform operating at approximately 400 km altitude in Very Low Earth Orbit. It features approximately 8 kg of available payload capacity, around 50W of dedicated payload power, high-speed X-band data downlink at up to 450 Mbps, 0.1 degree pointing accuracy, and N2O chemical propulsion for orbit maintenance. Integration window is Q3/Q4 2026.

VLEO, between 200 and 400 km altitude, is operationally demanding due to higher drag, thermal cycling, and atmospheric interaction. Most providers avoid it because the economics don’t work for standard rideshare. We’ve engineered VLEO operations into our platform because many validation payloads need that environment: higher resolution imaging, atmospheric science, propulsion testing, and sensors that benefit from closer proximity to Earth. If your technology needs VLEO conditions to prove itself, we can fly it there. Read more: why VLEO is the next frontier for satellite operations.

Mission 0, completed in Q4 2024, was a technology transfer and learning mission with in-orbit experiments across Earth observation, AI edge compute, and communications. It gave the team practical know-how across satellite integration, operations, and data workflows. We treat it as an operational foundation. VLEO-1 is the first Satelyx-led catalog validation mission.

Every mission is different, so pricing is case by case. It depends on your payload size, power requirements, orbit, mission duration, and complexity of integration. We work with you to design the right mission at the right investment level. Rather than quoting a fixed price, we architect the mission around your needs and budget, then give you a clear cost estimate as part of the mission architecture review.

You provide your payload hardware and the engineering expertise on your technology. We handle everything else: the satellite bus, launch procurement, ground station operations, mission planning, regulatory licensing, insurance, integration, and data delivery. You’ll collaborate with our engineering team during integration to make sure your payload interfaces correctly and meets its validation objectives, but you don’t need an ops team, a launch contract, or satellite expertise on your side.

Step 1, The Intake: you share your payload specs, mission objectives, and your specific success criteria (what data you need to prove your tech works). We respond within 48 hours. Step 2, The Matching: we analyze where your tech fits into our infrastructure pipeline, assessing mission fit (which upcoming flight and orbit matches your needs), integration audit (how your payload integrates into our bus), and enhancement check (how the Satelyx ecosystem can provide a superior system-level outcome). Step 3, The Architecture Alignment Review: we host a technical review call to present our integration proposal, showing you the slot reserved for your payload and the technical path to get your hardware Satelyx-Verified in orbit. Step 4, Phased Engagement and Milestone Gates: we move into a phased engagement with clear gates. You only commit further at each stage (MNDA, MOU, Integration, Launch).

Yes. We have active partnerships with organizations including TASA (Taiwan Space Agency, advisory), JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization), and multiple technology partners under NDA. We can connect you with references once we’re in a serious conversation and mutual NDAs are in place.

Space carries inherent risk, and we’re transparent about that. Our approach to risk management includes phased milestone gates so you only commit further at each stage, payload isolation design so that one payload’s issue doesn’t affect another’s certification, comprehensive pre-flight testing and simulation, and insurance options for mission-critical hardware. We’ve designed the Agile Prime model to distribute risk across the mission architecture rather than concentrating it on any single partner.

We design for payload isolation. When payloads at different Technology Readiness Levels share a mission, we architect the flight so each is independently verified against its own success criteria. A TRL 6 experiment doesn’t affect certification of a TRL 8 operational sensor on the same platform. Each payload gets its own validation report and flight heritage documentation, regardless of what else is on the mission.

After a successful mission, you receive a comprehensive flight heritage package: performance data, telemetry logs, environmental exposure records, and a TRL advancement report. This documentation is what you need to demonstrate flight heritage to government procurement officers, defense customers, investors, or certification bodies. It’s the difference between ‘we tested it in a lab’ and ‘it worked in orbit.’ Learn more about IOD, TRL levels, and flight heritage.

For standard IOD slots on VLEO-1: CAN bus and RS422 interfaces, 24.5 to 29.2V bus voltage, approximately 50W dedicated payload power, and high-speed X-band data downlink at up to 450 Mbps. This covers most validation payloads up to ~8 kg. For larger or mission-critical payloads (propulsion systems, full sensor suites, complex subsystems), we architect dedicated missions on 100-300 kg class microsatellites with custom interface specs, higher power budgets, and orbit-specific configurations. The platform adapts to the mission, not the other way around.

Satelyx is UK-headquartered, based in Taiwan, with active market entry into Japan. Our engineering team operates from Taiwan with advisory support from TASA (Taiwan Space Agency). We maintain global launch and partner relationships across Asia-Pacific, Europe, and beyond.

Our team includes veterans of Singapore’s satellite programs who have collectively built and launched over 15 satellites. Dr. Raymond Tsai, our advisor, has led multiple satellite launches and serves as a TASA advisor. Our team combines deep satellite engineering experience with mission integration expertise across multiple orbital regimes.

Send your payload specs to [email protected] or use the mission fit form. Any format works: a datasheet, a whitepaper, even a rough sketch. We’ll respond within 48 hours with initial feedback and next steps. No commitment required to start the conversation.