Supernova — Rapidly Maneuverable Multi-Orbit Spacecraft

Supernova is Portal Space Systems’ flagship rapidly maneuverable spacecraft, built around the company’s patented Flare solar thermal propulsion (STP) system. Unlike chemical propulsion (high thrust, low Isp) or electric propulsion (high Isp, low thrust), solar thermal propulsion heats ammonia propellant using concentrated solar energy stored in a thermal battery, achieving specific impulse approaching nuclear thermal propulsion performance without a reactor — combining meaningful thrust with efficiency far beyond chemical systems. The result is a ~500 kg spacecraft capable of up to 6 km/s of total delta-V that can transfer from LEO to GEO in hours and reach cislunar space in days rather than the weeks or months required by competing systems. Supernova is payload-agnostic, hosting up to 500 kg of customer payload, and can be readied from standby to operational in minutes, with payload swap turnarounds under 24 hours. The Flare Heat Exchanger (HEX) thruster — a 3D-printed component that combines heat exchanger and nozzle into a single piece — was validated at full power in a thermal vacuum chamber in September 2025, making Portal the first commercial company to successfully test solar thermal propulsion at operational temperatures in a vacuum environment. The Supernova shares 80% of its subsystems with the smaller Starburst demonstration vehicle, which is manifested on SpaceX Transporter-18 in Q4 2026. Portal Space Systems, based in Bothell, WA, raised a $50 million Series A in April 2026. Target applications include national security space, cislunar logistics, rapid ISR retasking, space domain awareness, on-orbit servicing, and debris removal (in partnership with Paladin Space for DRaaS missions).