Robert, Ryan, and Kirby Carlisle, former SpaceX engineers, founded Argo Space in late 2022 to revolutionize space infrastructure. Instead of building rockets, the brothers focus on spacecraft that utilize water as a universal propellant, leveraging its abundance across the Solar System, including potential harvesting from the Moon.
Water serves multiple roles in Argo's vision: as propellant, coolant, and radiation shield. This multi-use approach increases the spacecraft's propellant mass fraction, allowing for longer missions and affordable logistics like satellite resupply and repair between low-Earth orbit, geostationary orbit, and the Moon.
Argo Space's first demonstration mission, Navigator, launched on a Falcon 9 rideshare in July. While contact was established, a failed solar array deployment led to power-negative conditions, preventing propulsion system tests. The company aims to refine this technology for a sustainable space transportation network.
Source: Ars Technica · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing