Space Forge has revealed a patent-protected design for a reusable re-entry system that will allow satellites to return to Earth at low cost and with reliability. The company is using space to create supermaterials that cannot be made on Earth, but the cost and complexity of existing return methods limit the range of materials that can be produced. Space Forge’s Pridwen heat shield uses a high-temperature alloy that is large enough to radiate the heat of re-entry away without burning the material, making it fully reusable. The shield is much larger than the vehicle and folds to fit inside the launcher using an origami technique. Space Forge has also developed a water-based hover net called Fielder, which manoeuvres itself underneath a re-entry vehicle to soften the landing and enable quick return to port. The company is incorporating Pridwen and Fielder technology into a reusable satellite platform to create a world-first in-orbit and return-to-Earth manufacturing service, the ForgeStar.
