Solestial

Some great coverage on Solestial and our recent $10M financing from our friends at TechCrunch: https://lnkd.in/gqUXygqE

Yesterday at IAC, Solestial Head of Product, Diana Aponte, shared how Solestial’s next-generation silicon photovoltaics can help bring space-based solar power within reach. Key barriers to SBSP implementation are cost and manufacturing constraints, problems that can be solved with Solestial’s PV technology for space. Our solar power modules are a fraction of the cost of III-V PV and our manufacturing is on track to scale production to 1MW/year capacity and beyond. ☀️ SBSP will require large solar arrays, a costly endeavor when III-V PV costs about $200-$400/W with long manufacturing lead times and limited production capacity. ☀️ Large arrays are heavy, and thus costly to launch. ☀️ Solestial’s silicon solar technology is available for roughly 1/10 the cost of III-Vs. ☀️ Our flexible solar power modules are ultrathin, low-mass for launch, and lend themselves to the next-generation of rollable, foldable, assembled-in-space solar arrays. SBSP is just one of the many ambitious projects our affordable, scalable, next-gen PV can help enable. What will you build with accessible solar technology?

Connect with the Solestial team at IAC! Visit our exhibit, MN1-A12 on Level +1 in the Startup Pavilion to see sample solar power modules and connect with our team. On Tuesday October 15, Solestial Head of Product, Diana Aponte will present, “Bringing Space-Based Solar Power Within Reach With Next Generation Silicon Photovoltaics” at 12:20pm in Space Hall 3 as part of Technical Session C3.1. Schedule a dedicated meeting: Luke Gordon, Head of Commercial Business Development https://bit.ly/4dCo7xD Vince Hearn, Head of Government Business Development https://bit.ly/3NkTxh2 We hope to see you at IAC!

Meet Solestial's first intern, Jack! 🚀 He is passionate about programming and joins us from Arizona State University where he studies computer science. Please join us in welcoming him to Solestial. What advice would you give to someone starting their first internship? Drop your tips below ⬇️.

We’re thrilled to welcome four amazing Solestians who joined us in Q2 and Q3: Briault, Nathaniel, Luis, Eric, and Kari! 🚀 Each brings a collaborative spirit and unique skills that are already making a big impact. Solestial continues to grow as our team works on scaling our manufacturing capacity to 1MW and beyond. Which open position is right for you? https://bit.ly/3XUx00M

We are thrilled to announce our latest subcontract award, which has been made possible through Advanced Space Power Materials and Architectures (ASTROMAT), a new Space Strategic Technology Institute (SSTI) funded by Air Force Research Laboratory and United States Space Force. ASTROMAT aims to advance next-generation ultra-lightweight photovoltaic technology, specifically focusing on the development and design of metal halide perovskites and ultrathin silicon to support high-performance, low-cost, space power systems. Solestial’s award of $500,000 over the next five years will allow it to assess the integration of TCO layers and perovskite on Solestial’s flexible, ultrathin, silicon solar cells. ASTROMAT is led by Rochester Institute of Technology with Solestial and others serving as subcontractors. Solestial is passionate about the future of space power, and we are looking forward to collaborating with our fellow award recipients on this exciting project!

Join a community of innovators developing the next generation of PV for space. Solestial is hiring. Which position is right for you: Head of Solar Cell and Module Manufacturing, Materials & Processes Engineer, Facilities Manager, Process Technician - Solar Module Manufacturing, or Laser Processing Engineer? View open positions and read more about life at Solestial at: https://bit.ly/3Za0AAo

The #Solestial team is looking forward to connecting with customers and colleagues at NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s 28th Space Photovoltaic Research and Technology Conference (SPRAT). Senior Scientist, Alex Fedoseyev, will present research on Solestial’s low-temperature annealing technology on Wednesday September 4 at 9:35am. Connect with Lead Technical Sales Engineer, Manuel Rosenzweig. Schedule a meeting with Head of Government Business Development, Vince Hearn here: https://bit.ly/4dPRywZ

Another piece of Solestial hardware made its way to space last week! One of our integrated solar power modules is providing power to AVS Added Value Solutions's LUR-1 satellite, which caught a ride to LEO on SpaceX’s Transporter 11 rideshare last Friday. The LUR-1 spacecraft, AVS’s pioneering spacecraft of the LUR microsatellite platform, is set to validate several AVS technologies alongside Solestial’s flight-proven silicon solar power module. The AVS team reported on Saturday that LUR-1 is fully operational and all systems are nominal following deployment. Congratulations to the entire AVS team on a successful deployment!

Congratulations to Starpath on closing additional funding to accelerate lunar ice mining for liquid oxygen (LOX) production on the moon’s surface! Solestial is proud to partner with Starpath on this ambitious project and provide a scalable power source that can support propellant production as it expands to serve the lunar economy. Read more about Starpath’s latest round of funding here: https://lnkd.in/gdNWs_Yh