VLEO In The News
EDA Commits $17.9M to New VLEO Military Research Project
March 16, 2026: The European Defence Agency (EDA) has announced a new military research initiative focused on very low Earth orbit (VLEO), highlighting growing interest in the domain for defense applications.
The effort aims to explore how VLEO can enable enhanced ISR capabilities, improved responsiveness, and new mission architectures for European defense systems.
Source: EDA Commits to New VLEO Military Research Project - Via Satellite
Image credit: European Defense Agency
Why This Space Startup Flies Where Other Satellites Can't Survive
Feb 25, 2026: Vaxon Space CEO Dr. Steven P. Shepard has a conversation with Aidan Daoussis of Balerion Space Ventures, discussing the momentum behind very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellites and the mission use cases being built at Vaxon Space.
The discussion includes why VLEO is becoming such an important domain for the next generation of space infrastructure, including opportunities for enhanced ISR, missile defense sensing and new AI-enabled space capabilities.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piWj3lWfUEM
Image credit: Balerion Space Ventures
Vaxon Space Participates in Starburst / IAI Cohort 4 Kickoff
Feb 5, 2026: IAI Catalyst has launched its fourth cohort, bringing together startups advancing new capabilities across aerospace and defense.
The program underscores a shift toward building new paths in areas such as autonomous systems, advanced sensing, AI computing and very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellites.
Image credit: Starburst / IAI
VLEO Momentum Builds at AIAA SciTech 2026 Panel
Jan 14, 2026:Vaxon Space CEO Dr. Steven P. Shepard participated in a panel at AIAA SciTech 2026 focused on very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellites and propulsion, alongside leaders from Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, the University of Colorado Boulder, and CU Aerospace.
The discussion covered air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP), emerging VLEO use cases, funding dynamics, and the growing alignment across academia, industry, and government on the importance of sustained operations at ultra-low altitudes.
The panel highlighted increasing momentum behind VLEO as a critical domain for next-generation ISR, missile defense sensing, and advanced space capabilities.
Source: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stevenpshepard_vleo-aiaascitech-activity-7417356554611482624-Zj84
Image credit: Vaxon Space
Redwire Awarded $44M DARPA Contract for Air-Breathing VLEO Satellite
Nov 19, 2025: Redwire has been awarded a $44 million Phase 2 contract from DARPA to advance its Otter Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) mission, focused on demonstrating an air-breathing satellite in orbit. The effort integrates air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) to collect and ionize atmospheric particles, enabling sustained operation in VLEO without traditional propellant limitations.
Built on Redwire’s SabreSat platform, the mission aims to validate a new class of low-altitude satellites with improved imaging resolution, lower latency, and higher revisit rates for defense and commercial use.
Source: https://spacenews.com/redwire-lands-44-million-darpa-award-to-build-air-breathing-satellite/
Image credit: Redwire
Spanish Startup wins $9M to Develop Very Low Earth Orbit Satellite Tech
Sep 23, 2025:Vaxon Space CEO Dr. Steven P. Shepard participated in a panel at AIAA SciTech 2026 focused on very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellites and propulsion, alongside leaders from Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, the University of Colorado Boulder, and CU Aerospace.
The discussion covered air-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP), emerging VLEO use cases, funding dynamics, and the growing alignment across academia, industry, and government on the importance of sustained operations at ultra-low altitudes.
The panel highlighted increasing momentum behind VLEO as a critical domain for next-generation ISR, missile defense sensing, and advanced space capabilities.
Source: https://thedefensepost.com/2025/09/23/spanish-startup-low-earth-orbit/
Image credit: Kreios Space
DeepSat Secures U.S. Air Force $1.25M SBIR Contract for VLEO Constellation
Aug 26, 2025: Los Angeles-based startup DeepSat has been awarded a Direct-to-Phase II SBIR contract from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to advance its Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) satellite constellation.
The effort focuses on persistent, real-time Earth observation for defense and commercial applications, including maritime monitoring and disaster response.
The Direct-to-Phase II award reflects strong confidence in DeepSat’s technical maturity and the growing demand for high-revisit VLEO systems supporting next-generation ISR missions.
Image credit: DeepSat