The blockbuster initial public offering (IPO) of SpaceX this month threw a massive spotlight on the space sector. It also made Elon Musk a trillionaire — at least briefly. But while Musk’s firm is focused on placing satellites some 500 to 600km above the Earth, a company based in a business park in Reading is trying to unlock one of the most valuable empty spaces in the sky.
Anatolii Papulov’s business, NewOrbit, wants to make satellites fly much closer to Earth than almost anyone else has managed — around 200 to 300km up. “The idea behind NewOrbit is that we can fly satellites three times closer to the ground compared to where they are flying right now,” says Papulov, the company’s chief executive and co-founder.
