The company specialized in the aerospace market, Thales Alenia Space, together with Unlimited Space Charge, the first commercial operator of vehicles for manufacturing in space, signed a contract to start the design and production phase of the “REV1” vehicle, which will constitute the first floating factory in the first space.
This is a pressurized vehicle with a floating manufacturing plant that will be used for specific missions, particularly in the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, agriculture and new materials.
It was announced that it could be operational by the end of 2025.
You can read: Channel One is bought by HMTV1 and will no longer be part of CM&, NTC and RTI
For his part, Thales Alenia SpaceAs a contractor, you will be responsible for the design, engineering and development of the REV1 vehicle.
But, Space Cargo Unlimited will be the owner and commercial operator of the vehicle.
“The signing of this contract demonstrates once again the leadership of Thales Alenia Space in the construction of atmospheric reentry systems for low orbit. We are very pleased with this partnership with Space Cargo Unlimite,” said Massimo Comparini, Deputy General Manager and Head of Observation, Exploration and Navigation Activities at Thales Alenia Space.
Also read: Aerolínea Estelar does not have permission to fly from Venezuela to Colombia
The French company has the experience acquired in the design and the manufacture of approximately 50 percent of the habitable volume of the Space Station International (ISS).
Space Cargo Unlimited’s purpose is the commercial exploitation of a fleet of unmanned cargo vehicles, machines capable of returning to Earth, to take advantage of microgravity conditions that prevent space in benefit of commercial applications on the planet.
You can read: Inflation, oil and taxes make 2023 look difficult: Avianca
The first vehicle REV1whose commissioning is scheduled for the end of 2025, the company also reported that it should be able to adapt to any available and compatible launch system.
This flexibility will provide the vehicle with unique characteristics to carry out new missionsparticularly in the equatorial orbit.