Solstar Space

Solstar Space Company, founded in March 2017, is carving a niche as a specialized internet service provider for the space domain. The company provides persistent, space-based connectivity services for a range of on-orbit assets, including satellites, launch vehicles, and space stations. Its target clients include commercial space companies, international space agencies like NASA, government bodies such as the U.S. Space Force, and researchers requiring interaction with in-flight experiments. The business model operates similarly to in-flight Wi-Fi on airliners, with revenue generated from either wholesale contracts or usage-based fees.

The company was founded by M. Brian Barnett, with Michael Potter and Mark Matossian as co-founders. Barnett, the CEO, has a career spanning over 30 years in the commercial space and satellite industries, including an early-career role at NASA working on Space Shuttle payload integration and astronaut crew training. This experience provided him with a deep understanding of space operations and the critical need for reliable communications. Solstar Space represents his third satellite communications startup, built upon more than a decade of research and development.

Solstar's core offering is a communications platform that delivers secure internet access, Wi-Fi, and data relay services in space. This is achieved through space-tested hardware, such as Wi-Fi access points and communicators, which are installed on spacecraft before launch. A key differentiator is the company's asset-light approach; instead of building its own costly satellite constellation, Solstar leverages existing commercial satellite networks to provide its services. This strategy significantly reduces capital expenditure. The company's technology facilitates a two-way data link, allowing ground-based teams to manage payloads and communicate with assets in space using everyday devices like smartphones. Milestones include transmitting the first commercial tweet from space aboard a Blue Origin rocket in April 2018 and demonstrating a persistent connection from launch to landing on a subsequent flight. The Schmitt Space Communicator device used in these tests was later accepted into the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's collection. The company has received multiple Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts from the U.S. Space Force and has a Space Act Agreement with NASA to test its technologies.

Keywords: space communications, in-orbit connectivity, satellite internet services, space-based WiFi, LEO communications, lunar communications, satellite data relay, spacecraft networking, M. Brian Barnett, commercial space, New Space, space-to-ground communications, payload management, space tourism connectivity, orbital transfer vehicle communications, on-orbit servicing, space logistics, satellite operations, Blue Origin, NASA Flight Opportunities, Space Act Agreement