Japan is increasing its investment in the indigenous space industry and easing some of its defence export restrictions. Against this background, Letara, a space start-up company based in Sapporo, has completed financing of 2.6 billion yen, amounting to approximately $16 million, in preparation for the expansion of operations from small satellite stages to larger thrust rocket systems.
Financing and moving to larger rocket systems
Letara had previously developed a hybrid propulsion for small satellites. The joint CEO Hirai said that a new round of funding would be used to move multi-year research and validation work to the commercialization stage and explore broader applications for space, defence and security markets.
According to the company, not only will in-orbit validation continue in the future, but a hybrid rocket system will also be developed for different scenarios. Target clients include satellite manufacturers, satellite operators, launch companies and government departments.
- Financing scale is 2.6 billion yen, or $16 million.
- By agencies like Headline Asia
- Participants include NES, Toyoda Gosei, etc.
Core technology targeting thrusts and costs
The Letara programme uses hybrid rocket designs to separate solid fuels from liquid oxidizers. Companies use lower-cost materials such as plastics and rubber as solid fuels, and mix, form and compress through their own processes to improve ignition stability and combustion consistency.
In the company ' s view, this programme seeks to address three long-standing problems of mixed propulsion: insufficient thrust, inadequate performance stability and the difficulty of burning control. According to them, the system is expected to provide higher thrusts while reducing waste compared to some traditional combination rockets using paraffin materials.
Ordered. Orbital ignition test next.
Letara, which originated from the advanced research at Hokkaido University, became independent from the school project in 2020. As launch and defence requirements have risen, the company has begun in recent years to extend its focus from satellite propulsion to the launch of defence-related systems.
The company stated that it had obtained orders from Rockets, Satellites and the Government of Japan, but did not disclose the contract amount. The next key development is an on-orbit ignition test with overseas partners. Letara is seen as an important pre-commercial node.
In addition to testing, companies need to establish reusable manufacturing processes, quality control systems and supply chains for fuel and receptacles to support scalable production. The company indicated that there was a possibility that recycled plastics could be used as fuel in the future, but that further testing and development was needed.