Orbital Matter printed a half-meter beam in orbit; one printer failed

By Olivia Hart

Orbital Matter, a German startup, 3D printed a half-meter rigid beam from custom plastic aboard its small Replicator-2 satellite in the vacuum of orbit, according to the company. Orbital Matter executives called the test a first for a free-flying spacecraft in orbit and a step toward constructing large structures in space.

The company also said previous microgravity printing had been limited to the pressurized environment aboard the International Space Station. According to Orbital Matter, Replicator-2 launched on a SpaceX rideshare mission this summer with four of its 3D printers aboard.

According to Orbital Matter, each printer can build a rigid, cylindrical beam by extruding coils of resin and curing the material with ultraviolet light. The company compares the process to cement and water.

Why does printing in orbit matter?

Future spacecraft will need to generate much more electrical power and radiate more heat into space, Orbital Matter said, particularly if they serve as orbital data centers. They must also fit within the narrow fairing atop the rocket carrying them to orbit. Orbital Matter argues that constructing equipment in orbit could ease both power and heat-dissipation challenges.

“Replicator 2 is the first proof that we can simply build the array in space, at whatever size the mission demands,” said Jakub Stojek, CEO and co-founder of Orbital Matter. The demonstration covered fabrication and deployment, not an array at that claimed range.

The company is partnering with the European Space Agency and Thales Alenia, a leading European satellite builder it collaborated with on Replicator-2. The announcement did not disclose contract values or customer commitments. The business pitch is straightforward: build in orbit to ease power, heat and fairing constraints.

What still has to unfold in orbit?

Orbital Matter describes today’s large space structures as origami projects. Large solar arrays and telescope mirrors fold for launch and deploy in orbit, a tricky engineering task. The company argues that making and assembling such structures in orbit could remove some of that complexity.

NASA has funded some work on the concept, including a Redwire mission that 3D-printed structural beams in a vacuum chamber in 2023 but never launched. That gives Orbital Matter a useful comparison, though not a direct commercial or technical peer. The distinction matters: vacuum printing has flown, while large, repeatable orbital deployment remains unproven.

What did Replicator-2 actually prove?

Two of Replicator-2’s four printers were designed to deploy a flexible solar array, but an anomaly caused one printer to fail. Orbital Matter said the boom created during the test still deployed the array, making the result an important proof of concept. Unlike earlier work inside the pressurized International Space Station, the test pushed fabrication into true vacuum.

“That’s why we put so many printers on this single satellite. We preferred to learn in orbit and adapt the software as needed rather than waste years testing every possibility on the ground,” Orbital Matter CTO Robert Ihnatisin told TechCrunch.

Orbital Matter did not disclose the deployed array’s power output, the boom’s length, or a printer reliability record. The result validates the mechanism but also exposes a reliability problem and leaves performance at scale unmeasured.

Can the booms reach useful scale?

The achievable boom length is limited by the amount of resin carried aboard the satellite, Orbital Matter said. Its engineers believe 100-meter booms are feasible, although that estimate has not been tested in orbit.

For comparison, TechCrunch cited SpaceX’s Starlink V2 Mini satellites, described as among the most powerful mass-produced craft in orbit, with solar arrays 20 meters long. A 100-meter boom would be five times the length of the cited 20-meter arrays.

The estimate does not establish whether such a boom can deploy at full length or support a large array. For investors, 100 meters is an engineering target, not a demonstrated specification.

What has to happen by 2028?

Orbital Matter is working on another demonstration scheduled for launch in 2028. It will test a larger printer on a bigger satellite, and the company hopes the system will deploy a solar array generating 5 kilowatts.

Orbital Matter describes the mission as a stepping stone toward deployments of more than 100 kilowatts per wing by 2030. Neither the 5-kilowatt output nor the 100-plus-kilowatt target has been demonstrated. The 2028 flight is the next hard checkpoint for the printer and the power goal.

Can this become a business?

Orbital Matter was co-founded in 2022 by Robert Ihnatisin, who previously worked at FormLabs, and Jakub Stojek. The startup raised a $3 million seed round.

The company is also collaborating with satellite builders considering its PADS, or printer-assisted deployment system, for extending solar panels, antennas and other components. The announcement disclosed no revenue, contract value or fleet order for PADS.

Orbital Matter has a flown prototype, a space-agency partner and prospective satellite-builder interest. The 2028 demonstration, rather than the half-meter beam already printed, will determine whether in-orbit manufacturing can become a repeatable space-manufacturing business.