Star Catcher Preps Protostar for First Free-Flying Power Beaming Test
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Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif. – September 28, 2026 -- Star Catcher Industries has its Protostar power node ready for launch aboard SpaceX's Transporter-18 mission, scheduled for October 2026, in an attempt to complete the first optical power beaming demonstration between two untethered spacecraft.
Protostar targets a power beaming feat never before achieved in orbit
Following launch and commissioning, Protostar will deploy and track a CubeSat, beaming measurable power to off-the-shelf solar panels on the target spacecraft. Success would mark the world's first optical power transfer between two free-flying spacecraft, validating the core technology stack Star Catcher intends to scale into a commercial orbital power grid: energy harvesting, satellite acquisition and tracking, and energy transmission.