Cardiff-based Space Forge has secured £10m in funding to develop its reusable fold-out heat shield technology, which aims to make it easier and cheaper to return materials manufactured in space.
Funding Details
The funding comes from the European Space Agency's general support technology programme (GSTP). It will support the design, build, launch, and return of Pridwen, a new fold-out heat shield system built to protect spacecraft returning to Earth.
Space Forge is a pioneer in in-space manufacturing, focusing on producing semiconductors in microgravity. The environment enables the creation of materials with properties that cannot be achieved on Earth.
Pridwen Technology
Named after the legendary shield of King Arthur, Pridwen is designed to ensure safe atmospheric re-entry and satellite recovery. Traditional heat shields are usually fixed, rigid structures or tiles attached to a spacecraft, which can add weight, take up space, and be difficult to reuse. Pridwen deploys during re-entry, creating a larger protective surface that helps shield the spacecraft from extreme heat and pressure while making the system lighter, easier to recover, and more practical to use again.
The funding will bring Pridwen to full commercial readiness, enabling frequent and reliable return of cargo from space, which is critical to the growth of the in-space manufacturing industry.
Previous Success
This funding follows the success of Space Forge's first orbital mission, where it generated plasma aboard its ForgeStar-1 satellite. The achievement marked a world-first for commercial in-space manufacturing and demonstrated that the conditions required to produce next-generation semiconductor materials can be created and controlled in low Earth orbit.
The next challenge is returning those materials to Earth reliably and repeatedly. Pridwen is the critical technology that Space Forge says will enable that next step.
Last year, Space Forge secured £22m in the biggest ever Series A equity funding round in the UK space tech sector, and one of the biggest for a Welsh start-up.
Executive Comments
Joshua Western, chief executive and co-founder of Space Forge, which also has an operation in Florida, said: “We’re thrilled to be awarded the GSTP funding to help bring Pridwen to commercial readiness. This proprietary technology is key to enabling the safe return of our materials to Earth, which in turn unlocks the future of in-space manufacturing. With our ForgeStar-1 mission we proved we can create the right manufacturing environment for next-generation semiconductor materials in space; with this newly funded mission, we can prove our ability to deliver products to market.”
The funding from the European Space Agency is a result of investment of the UK Space Agency in it.
UK Government Space Minister Liz Lloyd said: “This investment shows our commitment to keeping Britain at the forefront of the fast-growing space sector. Space Forge is developing technology that could make bringing materials back from space more like a regular delivery service than a one-off mission. We are proud to back a British company leading the way in a new area of space technology.”
