In-orbit manufacturing start-up Space Forge has produced its first plasma in orbit aboard the ForgeStar-1 satellite. It's a world first and a major step toward the company's vision of making novel semiconductors in space, which could revolutionize future electronic technologies.
UK-based Space Forge launched its pioneering ForgeStar-1 craft in June 2025 and has been bringing it to life since. In December 2025, the microwave oven-sized satellite fired up its miniature furnace for the first time and generated plasma — a stream of gas as hot as 1,832 degrees Fahrenheit (1,000 degrees Celsius). In future missions, such plasma will help SpaceForge forge super efficient, out-of-this-world materials in weightlessness.
