Space startups in Germany
The directory tracks 11 space companies in Germany. They work on launch, Earth observation, logistics, information & research and more.
Updated 27 September 2026 · 9 milestones in the last 90 days · Follow by RSS
Where things stand
As of 27 September 2026
Three German companies in the directory build rockets. Isar Aerospace lost its first Spectrum half a minute after liftoff in March 2025. The second reached orbit on 5 September 2026, the first orbital launch from Western European soil. Nine days earlier ESA had awarded Isar and Rocket Factory Augsburg European Launcher Challenge contracts for flights through 2030. RFA shipped its first RFA ONE stages to SaxaVord Spaceport in Shetland in March 2026, but a tank problem cancelled its July launch window. The third, HyImpulse, flew its paraffin-fuelled SR75 from South Australia in May 2024.
Two more are building capsules that bring cargo back from orbit. The Exploration Company's Mission Possible capsule survived reentry in June 2025 but was lost minutes before splashdown. In September 2026 ESA awarded the company a contract to fly a Nyx cargo demonstration to the International Space Station by mid-2029. Atmos Space Cargo flew Phoenix 1 in April 2025, Europe's first private reentry capsule test. Its data came home but the capsule did not.
ConstellR measures surface temperature from orbit, and AIRMO plans a twelve-satellite methane-monitoring constellation from 2027. Morpheus Space's GO-2 electric propulsion was validated in orbit in July 2025. PT Scientists, which planned to land on the Moon, filed for insolvency in 2019 and was dissolved by merger in 2024. Precious Payload bought HOSTmi in 2022.
Latest milestones
Every dated event from the companies below, newest first, each with its source.
The Exploration Company: ESA awards a €760M ALADDIN contract for a Nyx cargo demonstration to the ISS by mid-2029, €310M firm and €450M in options for two more missionsThe Exploration Company: Books an Ariane 6 with Arianespace for the Nyx demonstration mission to the ISSThe Exploration Company: Raises a $450M Series C led by Bessemer, Atomico and the Scaleup Europe Fund, taking total funding to about $680M
Isar Aerospace: Spectrum reaches orbit on its second flight, the first orbital launch from Western European soil, and releases five cubesats and a DLR experiment
HyImpulse: Extends its Series A by more than €50M, co-led by JOIN Capital and Ace Capital Partners, taking total funding to about €125MIsar Aerospace: Signs a launch contract with Astroscale Japan to fly the ADRAS-J2 debris-removal mission on Spectrum from Andøya in 2027 or 2028Isar Aerospace: ESA awards a €197.8M European Launcher Challenge contract for Spectrum flights through 2030 and vehicle upgrades
Rocket Factory Augsburg: ESA awards a €186.9M European Launcher Challenge contract for RFA ONE flights through 2030 and vehicle upgradesRocket Factory Augsburg: Tank problem forces a destack, cancelling the launch windowThe Exploration Company: Acquires European Astrotech, a UK propulsion-services firm at Westcott that fuels spacecraft and supports Nyx propulsion workShow 35 earlier milestones
The Exploration Company: Drops a Nyx test vehicle from 2.8 km over the Mojave; the drogue-to-main parachute handover works as planned
OKAPI:Orbits: ESA contract to link space traffic and air traffic management
AIRMO: Raises a €5M seed led by Ananda Impact Ventures to fund its first satellite missionRocket Factory Augsburg: First RFA ONE stages shipped to SaxaVord Spaceport
ConstellR: Closes a €37 million Series A led by Alpine Space VenturesAIRMO: Picks EnduroSat to host its methane sensors for a twelve-satellite constellation from 2027HyImpulse: Closes a €15M Series ARocket Factory Augsburg: Preselected by ESA for the European Launcher Challenge
Morpheus Space: GO-2 electric propulsion is validated in orbit aboard a D-Orbit ION carrierConstellR: SkyBee-2 launched on Falcon 9 Transporter-14The Exploration Company: Nyx demonstrator Mission Possible survives reentry but is lost minutes before splashdown; declared a partial successOKAPI:Orbits: Raises €13 million second seed led by Ventech
Atmos Space Cargo: PHOENIX 1, Europe’s first private reentry capsule test, flies on Bandwagon-3; the data comes home, the capsule does notConstellR: Releases first light thermal imagery of Tokyo at nightIsar Aerospace: Receives Norway’s first launch permit, clearing Spectrum’s test flight from AndøyaIsar Aerospace: Spectrum lifts off on the first orbital attempt from continental Europe and is lost half a minute inOKAPI:Orbits: ESA contract to rebuild the MASTER debris population modelRocket Factory Augsburg: UK CAA grants the first vertical orbital launch licenceConstellR: SkyBee-1 launched on Falcon 9 Transporter-12
PT Scientists: The legal entity is dissolved by merger, recorded only in the commercial registerRocket Factory Augsburg: RFA ONE first stage destroyed in a static fire explosionThe Exploration Company: Nyx Bikini, its reentry demonstrator, flies on Ariane 6's first launch but is never released after an upper-stage faultHyImpulse: SR75 flies from the Koonibba test range in South Australia, the first launch of its paraffin-fuelled hybrid rocketMorpheus Space: Opens its Reloaded factory in Dresden to scale GO-2 propulsion productionOKAPI:Orbits: Launches OKAPI:Astrolabe conjunction coordination productConstellR: Extends the seed round to €17 million and enters the US marketAIRMO: Raises €5.2M pre-seed led by Findus Venture, alongside a €3.7M ESA InCubed contractRocket Factory Augsburg: KKR invests €30 million in Rocket Factory AugsburgConstellR: Raises $10 million seed co-led by Lakestar and VsquaredOKAPI:Orbits: Raises €5.5 million seed led by MunichRe Ventures
HOSTmi: Acquired by launch-services marketplace Precious PayloadRocket Factory Augsburg: Wins the DLR microlauncher competition and €11 millionHOSTmi: Signs a brokerage agreement with Southern Launch to match marketplace payloads with launch capacityPT Scientists: Relaunches as Planetary Transportation Systems after a rescue by logistics firm Zeitfracht and a management buyoutPT Scientists: Files for preliminary insolvency in Berlin while seeking funds for the ALINA landerRecently added
All 11 companies
Companies still operating first, then by latest news.
The Exploration Company Nyx, the reusable cargo capsule
Isar Aerospace Spectrum, Europe’s private orbital rocket
HyImpulse Paraffin-fuelled hybrid rockets
Rocket Factory Augsburg Small rockets, automotive-style production
OKAPI:Orbits Satellite collision avoidance software
AIRMO Methane monitoring from orbit
ConstellR Surface temperature monitoring
Morpheus Space Agile electric propulsion
Atmos Space Cargo Reentry capsules for orbital cargo
HOSTmi AcquiredSpace services marketplace
PT Scientists Shut downLunar lander
How many space startups are there in Germany?
Space Bandits tracks 11 space companies in Germany. Of those, 9 are active startups.
What do space startups in Germany work on?
The biggest groups are launch (3), Earth observation (2) and logistics (2), out of 7 sectors in all.
What is the latest news from space startups in Germany?
The most recent milestone on record is from The Exploration Company, dated 10 September 2026: "ESA awards a €760M ALADDIN contract for a Nyx cargo demonstration to the ISS by mid-2029, €310M firm and €450M in options for two more missions."
How many space startups in Germany have shut down?
1 of the 11 have shut down. The graveyard records how each one ended.
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