PHOENIX Reentry Capsule
ATMOS Space Cargo
Free-flying orbital spacecraft with Inflatable Atmospheric Decelerator (IAD) reentry technology, offering commercial two-way LEO orbital logistics for microgravity research, manufacturing, and government hypersonic testing.
Technical specifications
- Vehicle type
- Free-flying spacecraft + IAD reentry capsule
- Reentry technology
- Inflatable Atmospheric Decelerator (IAD) — heat shield and aerodynamic brake
- Operations
- Fully autonomous, station-independent free flyer
- Mission duration
- Multi-week orbital missions
- Launch vehicle
- SpaceX Falcon 9 (rideshare)
- Recovery location
- Near Santa Maria, Azores, Portugal
- Applications
- Microgravity research and manufacturing, pharmaceutical, government hypersonic testing
- PHOENIX 2 partners
- Space Cargo Unlimited (BentoBox platform integration)
- Capsule generation
- PHOENIX 2 — scheduled launch 2026
- ESA partnership
- Yes
About
PHOENIX is ATMOS Space Cargo’s family of reentry capsules designed for commercial orbital logistics — transporting payloads to orbit, operating them in microgravity for multi-week missions, and returning them safely to Earth via controlled autonomous reentry and precision land recovery.
The key innovation in PHOENIX is the Inflatable Atmospheric Decelerator (IAD): an inflatable structure that simultaneously serves as both a heat shield and aerodynamic braking device during reentry. This eliminates the need for traditional ablative heat shields, reducing vehicle mass, improving payload-to-total-mass ratio, and significantly lowering environmental impact. The design allows PHOENIX to be significantly lighter and more cost-effective per kilogram returned than competing capsule architectures.
PHOENIX is a fully independent free-flyer spacecraft: it does not require docking with the ISS or any space station. The vehicle features integrated propulsion for attitude control and de-orbit maneuvers, power generation, thermal management, comprehensive telemetry and command, and an onboard communications and ground segment infrastructure. Recovery operations are conducted near Santa Maria in the Azores, Portugal.
PHOENIX 2, the second-generation vehicle, is the operational commercial capsule. It is designed to carry external payloads (including Space Cargo Unlimited’s BentoBox microgravity research platform), launching on SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare missions. A seven-flight program with Space Cargo Unlimited was announced in November 2025, representing Europe’s first fully commercial station-independent two-way orbital logistics service. PHOENIX 2 is scheduled to launch in 2026.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.
