General Galactic Bets on Water to Power the Next Space Age

For decades, a foundational promise of deep space exploration has rested on a simple, unproven idea: that water mined on the moon or Mars could be turned into rocket fuel. While championed by figures from NASA to Elon Musk, no one has yet made it work for a spacecraft of meaningful scale. A startup named General Galactic, founded by two young engineers, is preparing to change that this fall.

The company plans to launch a 1,100-pound satellite, using water as its sole in-orbit propellant. The mission, named Trinity, will test two propulsion methods. First, using electrolysis to split water into hydrogen and oxygen for chemical thrust. Second, ionizing oxygen from water into a plasma for efficient, long-duration electric propulsion—a system its creators say can offer more than just a gentle 'burp' in space.

'Our vision is to build a gas station on Mars,' says CEO Halen Mattison, a former SpaceX engineer. 'But first, we're building the refueling network in between.'

The potential applications are immediate. With rival satellites conducting increasingly close maneuvers, the U.S. Space Force has a keen interest in spacecraft that can move decisively. General Galactic's system could provide satellites with significantly greater maneuverability.

Founded by Mattison and CTO Luke Neise, a Varda Space veteran, the company has secured a launch slot on a Falcon 9 rocket and raised $10 million in venture capital. They acknowledge the technical hurdles, from ionized oxygen's corrosive nature to the added mass of electrolysis systems. Consultants and former government scientists call the approach clever but untested, filled with 'what-ifs.'

Yet, if successful, this autumn's demonstration could begin to transform a long-held assumption into a practical tool, paving a new path for satellites today and, perhaps, for missions to distant worlds tomorrow.

Source: Wired science