Bothell Startup Reshapes Satellite Propulsion With Solar Power

Satellites In orbit are a big business. And sometimes one of the things that satellites have to do is to adjust their orbit. Typically, this is caused by some sort of reaction mass that is turned into thrust. The downside is that the satellite only has as much reaction mass as it was sent up with. When it runs out, it's not adjusting its orbit again, ever. 

How will this change?

A new startup in Bothell, (Four years is new, right?) has a new idea, that's really an old idea. In science fiction novels they had something they called a solar sail that would capture the “solar wind" and provide propulsion. This is a Very different concept which also requires reaction mass but is much more economical because it uses solar energy to expand its reaction mass to provide thrust. 

According to seattletimes.com.
‘a type of propulsion system that uses energy from the sun to generate thrust that will push the satellite through space. The system captures and focuses the sun’s energy to heat what is essentially rocket fuel, then pushes that fuel out of a nozzle, propelling the spacecraft.’ 

The company is called Portal, and its new maneuverable orbital spacecraft is called Supernova. Using seed money from the US Space Force (about $20 million) Portal has big plans. A test mission is set for February, its first flight for the latter part of 2026, and their first customer deliveries set to begin in 2027. 

It's easy to see with this photo above that the portal satellite thruster is much smaller and lighter than a traditional satellite thruster. 

It was not that long ago that Portal announced that they were going to do an expansion in Bothell, a 50,000 square foot manufacturing facility that they hope to open later in 2026. 

Portal is banking on new developments in material science, 3D printing, and satellite design. 

Bothell’s Portal Space Systems working on an ‘unlock’ for the industry | The Seattle Times