Engineering-lead,
execution-driven
Ion was founded in 2025 by engineers with NASA flight program experience and deep hardware + low-level software engineering backgrounds. We're serious about making the impossible things possible.
The people behind the mission
We are builders, designers, and engineers. We know how to get things done - and have a proven track record in doing so.
Our founders contributed to the direct no-relay flight radio for NASA's Dragonfly rotorcraft lander for Titan and the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) - missions targeting some of the most challenging destinations in the solar system.
We understand spacecraft from the transistor up, with experience spanning bare-metal bootloaders, custom CPU architecture design, embedded flight systems, and professional deep-space communications. This isn't theoretical - it's what we've been building.
We are committed to bringing humanity to the stars. By mastering interplanetary transport today, we are laying the groundwork for a future where humanity can travel between the stars. Each mission builds the propulsion technologies, operational frameworks, and institutional knowledge that will make that future possible.
NASA Heritage
Dragonfly & IMAP
Contributions to NASA's Dragonfly rotorcraft lander for Titan and the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe.
Hardware Depth
Full stack
Experience spanning bare-metal bootloaders, custom CPU architecture design, and embedded flight systems.
Communications
Ground to orbit
Satellite link design and operations experience, ranging from homebrew ground stations to professional deep-space communications rigs.
Founded
2025
A new company with deep roots, built on years of combined experience in aerospace, embedded systems, and telecommunications.
Our advantages
Propulsion
8x efficiency
Our ion thrusters achieve specific impulse roughly eight times greater than chemical rockets, transforming deep space missions into commercially viable pursuits.
Scheduling
Quarterly windows
No dependence on the traditional 26-month Mars transfer windows. Continuous low-thrust spirals allow flexible departure scheduling year-round.
Cost
Commercial pricing
What was once limited to multi-billion-dollar government programs becomes accessible at commercial rates - starting at $600/mg for Martian regolith.
Heritage
NASA-proven team
Flight program experience on Dragonfly and IMAP. We've built hardware that's going to Titan - Mars is much closer.
Sample Quality
Pristine integrity
Gentle, continuous acceleration preserves sample composition and structure, avoiding the high-g shocks that can compromise scientific value.
Platform
Multi-mission capable
The same propulsion platform supports sample return, payload deployment, and deep space logistics - built for reuse, not one-offs.
We are committed to bringing humanity to the stars. By mastering interplanetary transport today, we are laying the groundwork for a future where humanity can travel between the stars.