Warsaw, Poland, and Toulouse, France, 20 July 2026. Orbital Matter has recently launched a joint technology demonstration that will test the deployment of a VHF antenna using a boom manufactured directly in orbit. Orbital Matter was accelerated by Thales Alenia Space’s Space Business Catalyst, this industry accelerator aims to shape and develop the space ecosystem of the future, supporting intrapreneurial projects and cooperating with startups. Offering technical, commercial and financial support, the Space Business Catalyst hosts numerous startups from all over the world, drawing on Thales Alenia Space’s geographic footprint in Europe. The industry accelerator played a key role to enable Orbital Matter’s first technological demonstration during the maiden flight of Ariane 6 launcher.
Next-generation communications satellites need antennas with increased size and versatility that are compact for launch but large and accurate once in orbit. The collaboration pairs Thales Alenia Space’s mechanism and antenna expertise with Orbital Matter’s in-orbit 3D printing, which builds continuous rigid booms directly in space from a photopolymer resin cured by UV light.
On this mission, one of Orbital Matter’s printers will deploy a mockup of a Thales Alenia Space deployable VHF antenna and provide rigid support for it, demonstrating the deployment concept for an antenna product the two companies are developing together.
The next step is developing a full-scale functional deployable antenna on the ground, followed by in-orbit deployment on a dedicated follow-on mission. Flight data from this demonstration will accelerate that timeline.
Working with Thales Alenia Space puts our technology next to a world leader in satellite antennas. Building the structure in orbit removes the need for bulky deployment mechanisms and keeps the system compact, while letting the antenna outperform current solutions, Jakub Stojek, CEO and co-founder of Orbital Matter
The demonstration is part of Replicator 2, Orbital Matter’s second satellite mission, an 8U CubeSat carrying four of the company’s 1U 3D printers to low Earth orbit.
About Orbital Matter
Orbital Matter builds large structures in orbit that are impossible to deploy with existing technologies. Its printers replace traditional deployment methods by manufacturing continuous rigid structures directly in orbit, providing the structural backbone for antennas, solar arrays and radiators without the physical limits of existing unfolding mechanisms. The company is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, with its main office and R&D in Warsaw, Poland.
Media contact: Orbital Matter: Jakub Stojek, CEO, jakub.stojek@orbital-matter.com
Press kit, images and animation: [LINK]