Skip to content

ExoTerra Resource (now Voyager Technologies)

Type: Startup → acquired Location: Littleton, CO Founded: ~2012 (earliest TechPort project is 2013 SBIR) Product: Halo Hall-effect thruster → Iris250 propulsion module → Courier 12U SEP bus Acquired: Oct 2025 by Voyager Technologies (NYSE: VOYG). Terms undisclosed. PI: Michael Vanwoerkom

Last updated: 2026-04-14 (session 35)

SST Project (1)

Courier Solar Electric Propulsion Module — 106825

  • TRL: 5→8 (target) | Period: 2020-01 → 2026-09 | Status: Active
  • Contract: 80ARC020C0002 (NASA Tipping Point), $1.74M
  • 12U CubeSat combining compact Halo Hall-effect thruster, deployable fold-out solar array (>200W), radiation-hardened electronics. Provides >1 km/s delta-v for 22–220 kg microsatellites. Xenon or krypton propellant.
  • Targeting LEO demo, but product has already shipped in volume for SDA constellation.
  • No TechPort documents attached.

Full TechPort Footprint (13 projects across 3 programs)

ExoTerra spans SBIR/STTR (10), SST (1), NIAC (2) — one of the deepest multi-program lineages in the SST portfolio.

Project Program TRL Period Topic
17736 SBIR Phase I 4 ~2013 SEP CubeSat bus for deep space
16785 SBIR Phase I 3 ~2014 Microsatellite direct-drive SEP
34096 SBIR Phase I 4 ~2015 CubeSat SEP power module (photovoltaic)
90493 SBIR Phase II 7 ~2016 CubeSat SEP power module (power conversion)
93531 SBIR Phase I 4 ~2017 High-power rad-tolerant CubeSat power
88515 NIAC Phase I 2 ~2017 NIMPH: Nano Icy Moons Propellant Harvester
94676 SBIR Phase I 5 ~2018 Modular Xe micro EP system
102068 SBIR Phase I 4 ~2019 AMBEC: Advanced Micro Brayton energy conversion
102358 SBIR Phase II 6 ~2019 Modular Xe micro EP system (Phase II)
103053 SBIR Phase I 4 ~2020 SEP upper stage for small LVs
106044 NIAC Phase II 2 ~2020 NIMPH Phase II
106825 SST 5→8 2020→2026 Courier SEP module (Tipping Point)
113501 SBIR Phase II 6 ~2021 SEP upper stage Phase II

Pattern: 7 years of SBIR-funded component maturation (thrusters, power, solar arrays) → SST Tipping Point for integrated system demo → defense production contracts.

Upstream Lineage

Source Detail Confidence
NASA SBIR pipeline (2013–2021) 10 SBIR/STTR projects built the Halo thruster, power system, and solar arrays as separate components confirmed (TechPort)
NIAC (2017–2020) NIMPH concept — conceptual only, no visible tech transfer to propulsion products confirmed (TechPort)
SST Tipping Point (2020) $1.74M to integrate components into Courier 12U system confirmed
USAF SBIR (2017) $149.8K for 12U agile inspector CubeSat — early defense interest confirmed (USASpending)

Federal Funding Footprint

USASpending ($6.1M+ across 15 awards)

Award ID Agency Amount Period Description
80ARC020C0002 NASA $1.74M 2020-01 → 2025-04 Tipping Point — Courier SEP module
80NSSC19C0224 NASA $1.50M 2019-07 → 2021-08 Modular Xe micro EP system (SBIR II)
80NSSC21C0588 NASA $749.9K 2021-08 → 2023-02 SEP upper stage (SBIR II)
NNX16CC04C NASA $740.4K 2016-05 → 2017-11 CubeSat SEP power module (SBIR II)
NNH14CL72C NASA $300K 2014-07 → 2015-01 Multi-purpose SEP module for ARM
NNX15CA59P NASA $125K 2015-06 → 2015-12 High-power deployable solar arrays
80NSSC18P2218 NASA $124.9K 2018-07 → 2019-02 CubeSat micro EP SBIR I
80NSSC19C0323 NASA $124.9K 2019-08 → 2020-02 AMBEC micro Brayton
NNX14CM40P NASA $124.8K 2014-06 → 2014-12 CubeSat SEP (SBIR I)
80NSSC20C0625 NASA $124.7K 2020-08 → 2021-03 SEP upper stage (SBIR I)
NNX17CP38P NASA $123.4K 2017-06 → 2017-12 Rad-tolerant PMAD module
NNX13CC62P NASA $124.9K 2013-05 → 2013-11 SEP deep-space bus (SBIR I)
FA865017P9223 USAF $149.8K 2017-08 → 2018-05 12U agile inspector (SBIR I)
FA864920P0926 USAF $49.4K 2020-03 → 2020-06 High-power hosted payload study
0001 USAF $47K 2014-07 → 2015-01 HOPS hosted payload study

Direct federal total: ~$6.1M | NASA: ~$5.9M | DoD: ~$246K

Indirect Revenue (subcontracts, not visible in USASpending)

  • York Space Systems / SDA Tranche 1: 21 Iris250 propulsion modules delivered (May 2025). York received SDA contract in 2022 for 42 Tranche 1 Transport Layer satellites. ExoTerra is subcontractor — revenue not directly visible but likely $10M+ based on production scale.
  • SDA Tranche 2: Under contract for follow-on deliveries.
  • Production ramp: 15→24 units/month target. $8M invested in production equipment, 100+ employees pre-acquisition.

Downstream Impact

Flight Heritage

  • DARPA Blackjack ACES (June 2023): Halo thruster first orbital firing on Blackjack constellation spacecraft. Orbit maintenance and raising demonstrated. Confidence: confirmed (SpaceNews, ExoTerra press release).
  • SDA Tranche 1 Transport Layer (Sept 2024 launches): 21 Iris250 modules on York Space Systems satellites. Direct-to-platform connectivity constellation. Confidence: confirmed (SpaceNews, Via Satellite).
  • SDA Tranche 2: Under contract, first deliveries expected 2025. Confidence: confirmed (press).

Commercial Products

  • Halo thruster: Miniaturized Hall-effect thruster (Xe/Kr). Proven on DARPA Blackjack.
  • Halo 12: Larger variant.
  • Iris250 propulsion module: Integrated unit delivering up to 250 kN·s impulse for microsatellites. The volume production product.
  • Courier: 12U SEP bus with Halo + deployable solar arrays + rad-hard electronics. The SST-funded integrated system.

Acquisition & Defense Position

  • Acquired by Voyager Technologies (Oct 2025, NYSE: VOYG). Voyager is positioning for Golden Dome missile defense program.
  • Post-acquisition: Littleton facility expanded 8,000 → 40,000 sqft. Production capacity doubled as of Apr 2026, with plans to quadruple from pre-acquisition levels.
  • ExoTerra/Voyager is now a production-scale propulsion supplier, not a development shop.

Voyager Technologies Parent — FY2025 Financials (session 35 update)

  • FY2025 net sales: $166.4M (up 15% YoY). Five strategic acquisitions in FY2025 including ExoTerra + Estes Energetics.
  • Record backlog: $265.6M entering 2026.
  • 2026 revenue guidance: $225M–$255M (increased guidance, driven by backlog).
  • ExoTerra's Iris250 / Halo product line is a key contributor to the propulsion segment, though Voyager does not break out ExoTerra revenue separately.
  • Implication: ExoTerra went from ~$6M cumulative NASA funding (2013–2025) to being part of a $166M/yr defense company with $265M backlog in under 12 months post-acquisition. The SBIR-to-production pipeline is now embedded in publicly-traded defense infrastructure.
  • Confidence: confirmed (Voyager Q4 2025 earnings, BusinessWire).

Publications

  • NTRS: 0 citations found (ExoTerra's work is primarily defense/commercial, not published in NASA technical reports).

Assessment

Outcome category: commercialized | Confidence: confirmed

ExoTerra is the deepest SBIR-to-production pipeline in the SST portfolio. The lineage is textbook: 1. 2013–2018: 6 NASA SBIR Phase I awards build individual components (thrusters, power, solar arrays, electronics) 2. 2016–2021: 4 SBIR Phase II awards mature components to TRL 5–7 3. 2020: SST Tipping Point ($1.74M) integrates components into Courier system 4. 2023: DARPA Blackjack ACES provides first flight heritage 5. 2024: SDA Tranche 1 deliveries — from demo to production (21 units) 6. 2025: Voyager acquisition; production doubles 7. 2026: Golden Dome positioning; 200 employees, 40K sqft facility

What SST funded: The Tipping Point was the system integration step — taking 7 years of component SBIR R&D and packaging it into a flight-ready 12U module. SST was the bridge between SBIR component maturation and defense production contracts.

Surprise delta: The depth of the SBIR pipeline was unexpected. 10 SBIR/STTR projects over 8 years, all feeding into the same Halo/Courier product family. Plus 2 NIAC projects (NIMPH) that appear conceptually unrelated. This is the most NASA-dependent company in the portfolio — $5.9M in direct NASA funding, with SBIR as the sustained R&D lifeline. The defense revenue (SDA, DARPA, Golden Dome) dwarfs the NASA investment but wouldn't exist without it.

Compare to other acquisitions: - Tyvak → Lockheed Martin (SST bus provider → defense prime) - BCT → Raytheon (SST bus provider → defense prime) - ExoTerra → Voyager (SST propulsion → defense propulsion supplier)

ExoTerra is the propulsion version of the bus-provider acquisition pattern. All three share: NASA SBIR pipeline → SST demo → defense contracts → acquisition.

Session 35 update — parent company context: Voyager FY2025 revenue of $166.4M and $265.6M backlog entering 2026 provides the first quantitative measure of the defense-industrial outcome of the SST pipeline. ExoTerra's Littleton facility quadrupling capacity means the Halo/Iris250 product line is scaling to meet SDA Tranche 2+ demand. The $6M NASA SBIR investment is now generating returns embedded in a publicly-traded defense platform with $225–$255M projected 2026 revenue.