{"id":663411,"date":"2026-10-23T20:28:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T20:28:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/663411\/"},"modified":"2026-10-23T20:28:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T20:28:09","slug":"atomic-6-composite-space-armor-is-deployed-on-starburst-1-spacecraft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/663411\/","title":{"rendered":"Atomic-6 Composite Space Armor Is Deployed on Starburst-1 Spacecraft"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Atomic-6 <\/a><\/p>\n

Source | Atomic-6<\/p>\n

On Oct. 21,\u00a0Atomic-6<\/a>\u2019s\u00a0(Marietta, Ga., U.S.) composite Space Armor technology was launched into orbit for the first time aboard Portal Space Systems\u2019 (Bothell, Wash., U.S.) Starburst-1 spacecraft, carried by a SpaceX (Starbase, Texas, U.S.)\u00a0Falcon 9 rocket as part of the <\/a>Bandwagon-5<\/a> dedicated rideshare mission. The launch moves\u00a0Space Armor\u00a0tiles from ground-based hypervelocity testing to its first operational deployment in space.<\/p>\n

The composite shielding technology<\/a> will help protect critical spacecraft systems against potentially catastrophic impact\u00a0from micrometeoroids and orbital debris (MMOD), addressing concerns related to the \u201cKessler Syndrome,\u201d a cascading effect of space debris collisions that could make parts of Earth\u2019s orbit unusable for satellites or space missions. Built with a fiber-to-resin manufacturing method, Space Armor\u00a0tiles also create the launch\u2019s composite radome, a structural enclosure that protects communication equipment and offers\u00a0communications transparency and impact resilience.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve proven Space Armor\u00a0tiles can withstand debris traveling at extraordinary speeds without generating harmful secondary fragments,\u201d says Trevor Smith CEO of Atomic-6. \u201cNow, we\u2019re putting that technology to work aboard Portal\u2019s Starburst-1.\u201d<\/p>\n

Space Armor\u00a0technology\u2019s combination of impact resistance, reduced mass, and radio frequency\u00a0permeability offers spacecraft manufacturers a new approach to protecting high-value orbital assets, including satellites, communications systems\u00a0and future crewed platforms. Unlike traditional metallic Whipple shields, Space Armor\u00a0tiles are lighter, thinner and engineered to resist fragmentation upon impact, reducing the risk of generating additional hazardous debris in orbit.<\/p>\n

In ground-based hypervelocity testing (see video below), Space Armor composite tiles successfully stopped projectiles traveling faster than 7 kilometers per second, or approximately 16,000 miles per hour, while producing no harmful secondary debris. In comparative testing, conventional aluminum shielding generated a multitude of fragments, some larger than the original projectile.<\/p>\n

VimeoAtomic-6 Space Armor Impact Video<\/p>\n

Portal\u2019s Starburst-1 installed Space Armor\u00a0tiles on its first free-flying spacecraft mission carrying live payloads. Designed for rapid maneuvering within an orbital regime, Starburst-1 will demonstrate capabilities that support rendezvous and proximity operations, rapid retasking and significant orbital changes during its planned 1-year primary mission.<\/p>\n

Portal and Atomic-6 will use experience from integrating Space Armor tiles onto Starburst-1 to validate installation procedures and develop best practices for incorporating the tiles into future spacecraft designs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Source | Atomic-6 On Oct. 21,\u00a0Atomic-6\u2019s\u00a0(Marietta, Ga., U.S.) composite Space Armor technology was launched into orbit for the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":663412,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[61,60,80],"class_list":["post-663411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=663411"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/663411\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/663412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=663411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=663411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=663411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}