Blowing Things Up to Move Forward
Rotating Detonation Engine Propulsion: A Breakthrough on the Edge
Good afternoon,
Last week, we linked to news that propulsion startup Juno won NASA’s TechLeap Prize for its work on Rotating Detonation Engines (RDEs)—a quiet signal that one of the most radical advances in rocket propulsion might be inching closer to reality.
Let’s break it down.
Traditional rocket engines use deflagration, or subsonic combustion, to generate thrust. RDEs, by contrast, use detonation waves—supersonic shock fronts that combust fuel more violently and more efficiently. The fuel-oxidizer mix detonates in a circular chamber, sending a rotating shockwave spiraling around the chamber wall. The result? Higher thermal efficiency, greater thrust-to-weight ratios, and reduced fuel consumption.
But there’s a reason this has remained mostly theoretical until now. The biggest challenge has been control. Sustaining a stable, continuous detonation wave in a rotating annular chamber is like trying to ride a tornado inside a wind tunnel. Materials must withstand brutal thermal loads. Combustion stability is fragile. And diagnostics are notoriously hard in the plasma-rich chaos of detonation.
So why does it matter?
If RDEs can be made practical, they offer huge potential advantages across both atmospheric and in-space propulsion:
Smaller, lighter engines with the same or more thrust
Longer mission durations due to higher fuel efficiency
Higher exhaust velocities, especially promising for upper stages or deep space missions
Possible pairing with metallic fuels or novel oxidizers for new mission architectures
For the broader space economy, RDEs could unlock capabilities that have long been cost- or weight-prohibitive:
Rapid orbital maneuvering, enabling more agile satellite constellations
Reusable in-space stages for cargo or crew transport
Interplanetary propulsion that closes transit windows to Mars or the outer planets
NASA’s TechLeap nod to Juno suggests a growing appetite to invest in the high-risk, high-reward edge of propulsion innovation. It’s too early to declare detonation propulsion solved—but we may be entering an era where combustion itself gets redefined.
Alright, let’s move on to the news!
News Headlines
Trump accelerates deadline for Russia-Ukraine ceasefire from 50 days to 10-12 days (BBC)
U.S. military quietly ramps up strikes against ISIS and al-Shabab in Somalia (SS)
Trump blocked Taiwan president Lai from NY stopover amid China talks (FT)
S. Korea makes peace overtures only for North to rebuff them (RT)
Politicos have started extraordinarily early, pointing fingers over potential gov't shutdown (AP)
Gallup: American support for Israel military action in Gaza plummets (AP)
One of the most powerful earthquakes ever recorded at 8.8 magnitude strikes Russian Kamchatka Peninsula and creates tsunami waves all the way to the U.S. west coast (BBC)
Satellites
Launches
Upcoming Launches
Space News
Nearly 20% of NASA employees have opted for voluntary buyouts (SN)
Musk's Starlink suffered a rare global outage (RT)
Starlink outage impacted Starshield, its defense comms service (FS)
Space Force to launch eighth X-37B spaceplane flight next month (DN)
GPS jamming extends to LEO as Pentagon races to bolster constellation (ASF)
Pentagon reverses course on sharing hurricane-tracking satellite data (WP)
General in charge of 'Golden Dome' will rely on existing tech (MIL)
Stanford spinoff EraDrive claims $1M NASA contract to help satellites detect and track other space objects (SN)
Space Force selects Boeing, Northrop, Viasat, Intelsat, and Astrais for 'protected tactical satcom' design contracts (SN)
Slingshot's new AI-enabled tool helps Space Force train for satellite operations (DS)
Spire Global launches new space-based intelligence products for defense market (SN)
Foreign Space News
NATO will follow Space Force lead with a 'single front door' to industry (ASF)
Bahrain set to create a National Space Strategy Toolkit, part of a World Economic Forum initiative to help other emerging nations maximize benefits of space tech and applications (BNA)
China adds new satellites to Guowang constellation, eyes accelerated launch rate (SN)
The MicroCarb satellite jointly developed by the French CNES and U.K. Space Agency, launched and will support climate monitoring capabilities (GUK)
Roscosmas administrator visits U.S. for first time since 2018 for talks with NASA, Musk's SpaceX (BBG)
Deal Flow
VC
British space surveillance startup Spaceflux raised $7.25M in a round led by UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (TEU)
Cascade Space raised a $5.9M seed round led by Y Combinator for communications in space (PU)
PE / M&A / Exits / Other
Northrop Grumman-backed space startup Firefly Aerospace is seeking to raise $632M at an $5.5B valuation in an IPO (WSJ)
Reusable rocket developer Innovative Rocket Technologies agreed to merge with BPGC Acquisition Corp. in a $400M SPAC deal (TC)
Opportunities
The U.S. Space Force will host an industry day to share the Government’s plans for the next generation GEO-based space domain awareness (SDA) satellite constellation (SAM)
NASA is seeking information on current and planned space-based relay communication and navigation capabilities to support NASA missions in the Earth Proximity region (SAM)
Lighter Side
Can you guess what we picked?
The real Planet X…
For real. We’re too aware.
Keep Building,
BOF