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Test 214 · 1 N engineering model · vacuum chamber, Peenya · 31 Oct 2026 · sample data

Thrusters for small satellites · Peenya, Bengaluru

Small-satellite thrusters you can fuel on an open bench.

We make 1-newton thrusters that run on a green propellant far less toxic than hydrazine. Below is the firing that proved our steady state. Every number on this site says how it was measured.

Talk to a propulsion engineerSee every milestone

Specific impulse
231 smeasured, vacuum, Aug 2026
Pulses fired on the stand
1,240as of 31 Oct 2026
Cumulative burn time
3.1 hfrom the test log

Ground-tested. Not yet flown: first flight planned for 2028.

051015202530354000.20.40.60.811.21.4sQualification limit 1.2 N12 pulses × 0.3 sValve openSteady state, 1.02 NValve closedThrust, N01020304000.20.40.60.811.21.4sQualification limit 1.2 N12 pulses × 0.3 sValve openThrust, N
Test 214: twelve 0.3-second pulses, then a 30-second steady burn. Thrust settles at 1.02 N once the catalyst bed is warm, well under the 1.2 N qualification limit. Sample data.

Mission

Every satellite should be able to move, and moving shouldn't take poison.

A small satellite rides to orbit on someone else's rocket and is dropped where the rocket goes, not where its mission needs it. To get there, to stay there, to dodge debris and to come down when its work is done, it has to push itself.

For sixty years that push has mostly come from hydrazine: a good propellant and a carcinogen. Fuelling a satellite with it takes a sealed room, people in pressure suits and most of a day. Many small satellites simply fly without a thruster.

Our propellant is an ADN-based blend that is far less toxic. It is fuelled on an open bench by people in gloves and goggles. It gives as much push per kilogram, and more per litre.

India wants every satellite its companies launch to be able to leave orbit within five years of its last day of work. That needs thrusters small, cheap and safe enough to put on every one. That's the job.

Meghna Raghavan and Arjun Kulkarni, founders · Peenya, 2021

Technology

What it does, how it works, and how we know

Three drawings, no jargon. The technology page has the rest: the qualification steps, the numbers with their test conditions, and what it can't do yet.

The whole technology page

01 · The job

Why a satellite needs a thruster at all

A rideshare rocket drops a small satellite where the rocket is going. After that, the satellite's own thruster does four jobs.

Each is a small push, a fraction of a newton for minutes at a time. Over a satellite's life they add up to most of what it can do.

1RAISE2HOLD3AVOID4DE-ORBIT1RAISE2HOLD3AVOID4DE-ORBIT
  1. Raise Climb from where the rocket left you to the orbit the mission needs.
  2. Hold Air drag pulls a low satellite down; small pushes keep it in its box.
  3. Avoid When a warning of debris comes, step out of the way.
  4. De-orbit At the end, lower the orbit so the satellite burns up within five years.
The four jobs, drawn round a plain Earth. Green: the path with the thruster; amber: the push or the hazard.

02 · The propellant

Why not just use hydrazine?

Hydrazine works, but it is toxic and causes cancer. Fuelling a satellite with it takes a sealed room, people in pressure suits and most of a day.

Our ADN-based propellant is far less toxic (not harmless: we still wear gloves and goggles). It gives about as much push per kilogram and more per litre, because it is denser.

The cost: the catalyst bed must be heated before each firing, which takes power the satellite has to spare.

Specific impulse in vacuum, seconds

  • Hydrazine thrusters (typical)225typical value for the class, from published surveys
  • Our 1 N engineering model231measured, vacuum chamber, steady state, August 2026
  • Our flight model (target)245a target, not yet measured
Specific impulse: how long one kilogram of propellant can push with the weight of one kilogram. More is better.

03 · How it works

Propellant in one end, push out of the other

The propellant arrives under pressure from the satellite's tank. A valve opens for as little as 50 milliseconds or as long as an hour.

In the catalyst bed, a hot bed of small coated pellets, the liquid breaks down into hot gas. The nozzle turns that heat into speed, and the speed is the push.

123456PROPELLANT IN →→ THRUST
  1. Inlet and filter Stops any particle that could jam the valve.
  2. Valve Opens and closes on a signal from the satellite, 50 ms at the shortest.
  3. Thermal standoff Thin tubes that keep the bed's heat away from the valve.
  4. Catalyst bed and heater Pellets heated to 350 °C split the propellant into hot gas.
  5. Chamber Where the gas builds pressure, about 10 bar.
  6. Nozzle Narrows, then widens: heat becomes speed, and speed is thrust.
The 1 N thruster in section, propellant flowing left to right. Not to scale.

Milestones

Done, next, and planned

Dates for done things are the day they happened. Dates for planned things are our best estimate, and say so.

Every milestone, with evidence

8 of 12 done · Next: Thermal vacuum cycling, December 2026

Milestones: done, next and planned
WhenWhatKindStatus
Aug 2026231 s measuredSpecific impulse in vacuum, steady state, on the 1 N engineering model.How we measured itTest Done
Sep 2026Vibration test passedRandom vibration and shock at small-satellite launch levels; fired normally afterwards.Test Done
December 2026Thermal vacuum cyclingEight cycles between −20 °C and +60 °C in vacuum, firing at both ends.Test Next
Early 2027Life test50,000 pulses and the rated total impulse on one thruster.Test Planned
Mid 2027Apply for IN-SPACe authorisationFor our own in-orbit demonstration on an ISRO POEM flight.Regulatory Planned
2028In-orbit demonstrationOur first firing in space, if a POEM slot and the authorisation come through.Flight Planned

Planned milestones are plans, not promises: dates move when tests teach us something.

Check us

Registrations you can check

Numbers you can look up yourself, and the things we haven't got yet, said plainly.

  • Held · March 2022

    DPIIT startup recognition

    DIPP00000 (sample, not valid)

    Recognises us as a startup under Startup India. It is not a quality mark, a licence or a government contract.

    Issued by DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry

    Check it yourself: Startup India → Verify recognition, with the number above. The check sends a code to the company, so we'll also send the certificate on request.

  • Held · August 2021

    Company registration (CIN)

    U00000KA2021PTC000000 (sample, not valid)

    A private limited company registered in Karnataka in 2021: directors, address and filings are public.

    Issued by Registrar of Companies, Bengaluru (MCA)

    Check it yourself: MCA services → View company or LLP master data → type the CIN.

  • Held · 2022

    GST registration

    29AAAAA0000A1Z0 (sample, not valid)

    Our GSTIN for invoices from Karnataka.

    Issued by GST Network, Karnataka

    Check it yourself: Search taxpayer → by GSTIN.

  • Planned · We expect to apply in mid-2027

    IN-SPACe authorisation for our own flight

    Needed for our own in-orbit demonstration on an ISRO POEM flight. Not needed to sell thrusters: the operator of each satellite holds the authorisation for it.

    Issued by IN-SPACe, Department of Space

    Check it yourself: IN-SPACe doesn't publish a list of authorisations. When ours is issued we'll print its reference here and send the letter on request.

  • Not needed yet

    Export authorisation (SCOMET)

    Our propellant and some technical data are on India's SCOMET list. We hold no export authorisation, so we don't send thrusters or controlled data outside India yet. We screen every enquiry from abroad.

    Issued by DGFT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry

    Check it yourself: DGFT publishes the SCOMET list and the authorisations it grants.

Each number above is printed as issued. If a check doesn't match, write to us: hello@example.com.

Team

Thirty-one people in Peenya

Chemists, test engineers, machinists and electronics people, most of whom have stood at the test stand when it fired.

All 8 people and our advisors

  • Illustrated portrait of Meghna Raghavan

    Founder · Propulsion

    Meghna Raghavan

    Co-founder and CEO

    Runs the company and still reads every test report.

    Before: Eight years testing satellite thrusters, in India and France.

  • Illustrated portrait of Arjun Kulkarni

    Founder · Propellant

    Arjun Kulkarni

    Co-founder and CTO

    Owns the propellant and the catalyst.

    Before: A PhD in energetic materials; ten years in a national lab.

  • Illustrated portrait of Farida Shaikh

    Test

    Farida Shaikh

    Head of test

    Runs the stand and the vacuum chamber; signs off every firing.

    Before: Built rocket-engine test stands for a university.

  • Illustrated portrait of Sanjay Gowda

    Manufacturing

    Sanjay Gowda

    Manufacturing lead

    Makes the valve bodies and nozzles, to a few microns.

    Before: Twenty-five years as a machinist in Peenya.

Partners

Who we work with, and on what

Named in words, with what we do together. We name a partner only with their permission.

Partners

Test facilities

  • Kaveri Institute of Technology, Combustion LaboratorySample

    Our first hot-fires in open air; a shared PhD student and two joint papers.

    Since 2022

  • Shakti Vacuum Systems, PeenyaSample

    Built and maintains our 1.2-metre vacuum chamber.

    Since 2024

  • Deccan Dynamics Test Labs, HosurSample

    Vibration and shock testing at launch levels.

    Since 2026

Programmes

  • Startup India Seed Fund SchemeSample

    A ₹20 lakh grant through our incubator for the first propellant batches.

    Since 2023

Investors

  • Ankur Hardware FundSample

    Led our seed round in 2024.

    Since 2024

  • Peenya Angels NetworkSample

    Our first cheque, in 2022.

    Since 2022

Evaluation customers

  • Two satellite builders (unnamed)Sample

    Paid evaluations of the engineering model for missions flying from 2028. Named when they say so.

    Since 2026

Press

In the press

Sample coverage: the outlets and headlines are invented for this template.

Press page, kit and contact

  • 30 September 2026The Deccan LedgerA Peenya shed, a vacuum chamber and a propellant you can handle in glovesArticle
  • 28 August 2026Orbit & Industry WeeklyIndian startup reports 231 s from a 1 N green thruster on the groundArticle
  • 12 November 2025Bengaluru Business ReviewWhy small satellites are short of thrusters, and who is building themFeature
  • 3 April 2025Swadeshi Tech PodcastEpisode 88: the chemistry of not poisoning your satellitePodcast

Careers · 6 open

Build thrusters with us

Every role shows its pay band. A few roles involve export-controlled work and need Indian citizenship; those are marked.

Careers: how we hire, what we offer

Propulsion

Electronics

Manufacturing

Business

Contact

Write to the right person

One address for each kind of question. An engineer answers mission questions, not a sales script.

Talk to a propulsion engineer

The test log, by email

What we fired, what we learnt, what's next. About four emails a year; one click in any of them stops it.