Space Machines Company (SMC) has announced the completion of its Scintilla propulsion engine.
“We’ve achieved faster progress than even our most optimistic schedules predicted,” Co-Founder and CEO of SMC, Rajat Kulshrestha, said. “The engine has reached steady-state conditions and demonstrated the ability to run for extended periods – a critical requirement for our satellite operations. We can now run this engine for minutes, limited only by total propellant supply from our tanks.”
The engine has achieved extended burn durations of 65 seconds with over 1,200 seconds of total testing time and 40 restarts and counting, representing a advancement in the company’s Rapid Response Vehicle - Optimus Viper, designed for rapid orbital manoeuvring and space domain awareness missions.
“Propulsion is absolutely core to what Space Machines needs to do,” Vice President, Engineering and Mission Operations at SMC, Ian Partis, explained. “The better the propulsion system and the more delta-v available, the greater range of orbits we can access and the faster we can get there. This is so fundamental to our mission that the satellite is essentially a propulsion system with a payload on top.”
The Scintilla engine, developed entirely in-house by SMC’s propulsion team, delivers 50 Newtons of thrust while maintaining 92% efficiency, exceeding the company’s initial 90% efficiency target with a clear pathway to near-100% efficiency in future iterations. The metal 3D-printed engine represents a new approach to satellite propulsion, prioritising reliability, scalability, and rapid iteration capabilities.
SMC has invested in complete vertical integration for this technology. The decision reflects the central role propulsion plays in the company’s satellite capabilities, with the Optimus Viper platform designed around extensive orbital manoeuvring requirements.
The propulsion system’s design has allowed for significant performance scaling, with the ability to increase thrust from the current 50 Newtons to 100-500 Newtons through relatively minor modifications.