Launch services and space systems specialist Rocket Lab has successfully built its cryogenic-ready Photon spacecraft for Eta Space and NASA’s LOXSAT mission, following the clearance of its systems integration review (SIR).
Earlier this month, Eta Space confirmed that the LOXSAT payload had at Kennedy Space Center. The payload was then shipped to Rocket Lab’s Long Beach facility, where it is now undergoing joint environmental testing with the Photon spacecraft.
LOXSAT will now test next-generation cryogenic fluid management in orbit, storing around 100 litres of liquid oxygen over nine months with no losses.
The findings will help shape Cryo-Dock, a full-scale cryogenic propellant depot planned for 2030, building on Eta Space’s earlier success holding cryogenic hydrogen on the ground for 18 months without boil-off.
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