Starfish Space to Attempt Unprepared Satellite Docking in Orbit

Starfish Space has announced on May 20 its upcoming demonstration mission, Otter Pup 2, scheduled for launch in the summer of 2025. The mission will attempt a commercial first: docking with an unprepared satellite in low Earth orbit (LEO). If completed successfully, it would mark the first time a commercial satellite has docked with another spacecraft in LEO.

Building on the experience of Otter Pup 1, which conducted a rendezvous with a D-Orbit ION spacecraft in April 2024, Otter Pup 2 is designed to perform a full sequence of rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking—collectively known as RPOD.

The target for the docking maneuver is another D-Orbit ION spacecraft, which, like most satellites currently in orbit, has not been modified to support such operations.

Render of Starfish Space's Otter Pup 2 on the left while approaching a D-Orbit ION vehicle. Credits: Starfish Space — *Render of Starfish Space’s Otter Pup 2 on the left while approaching a D-Orbit ION vehicle. Credits: Starfish Space*

The Otter Pup 2 mission is not only a milestone in satellite servicing but also a critical test of Starfish Space’s proprietary RPOD (Rendezvous, Proximity Operations, and Docking) technologies. These include autonomous navigation and guidance systems, as well as a non-invasive docking mechanism.

The aim is to validate these technologies in preparation for future servicing missions using the company’s full-scale Otter servicing vehicle, scheduled to fly on contracts with NASA, the U.S. Space Force, and Intelsat in 2026.

“If successful, this mission will further validate our unique approach to satellite servicing: taking complex problems that were traditionally solved with hardware and instead solving them with software,” said Trevor Bennett, Co-Founder at Starfish Space. “This allows us to make Otters an order of magnitude smaller than other servicing vehicles—making them faster to build, faster to launch, and finally closing the business case for satellite servicing to scale across the space industry.”

Autonomous rendezvous and docking

Otter Pup 2 is designed to operate with full autonomy during key phases of the mission. The vehicle is equipped with several in-house developed technologies:

CETACEAN, a computer vision-based navigation software, enables real-time estimation of the spacecraft’s position and orientation relative to the client satellite.
CEPHALOPOD, a guidance and control system, is responsible for calculating and executing the complex maneuvers required for safe rendezvous and docking.
Nautilus, the docking mechanism, does not require the client spacecraft to have any specialized interface. For Otter Pup 2, an electrostatic version of Nautilus will be flown, which is engineered to adhere to flat surfaces composed of various materials commonly found on satellite exteriors.

The mission will be launched aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-14 rideshare flight, currently scheduled for no earlier than June 2025. The docking attempt is expected to occur later in the year following a series of preparatory maneuvers and system checks.

Industry collaboration

A number of industry partners have contributed to the Otter Pup 2 mission:

Astro Digital manufactured and integrated the satellite bus.
ThrustMe provided electric propulsion thrusters.
Redwire supplied the Argus camera system used for navigation and situational awareness.
Honeybee Robotics contributed hardware components used in the Nautilus docking system.

*Otter Pup 2 will dock with a flat side panel of the D-Orbit ION spacecraft, eliminating the need for a dedicated docking adapter. Credits: Starfish Space*

The client for the docking attempt will be a D-Orbit ION spacecraft, continuing the operational collaboration established during the Otter Pup 1 mission. During its first mission, Otter Pup was launched as part of an orbital transfer vehicle provided by Launcher.

Shortly after deployment on a Transporter mission in June 2023, the vehicle began spinning in a controlled manner, prompting the immediate release of Otter Pup and other payloads. Although this prevented Starfish from executing its planned rendezvous with the Launcher tug, the spacecraft was able to approach a separate D-Orbit ION vehicle, closing in to within one kilometer and capturing imagery.

Importantly, the ION spacecraft is classified this time as “unprepared,” which mirrors the status of most current satellites in orbit. Demonstrating the ability to safely dock with such satellites is a major step toward making on-orbit servicing a routine part of space operations.

Commercial and technical context

Since its founding in 2019, Starfish Space has raised more than $50 million in venture capital. The company is headquartered in Tukwila, Washington, and its team includes engineers with backgrounds in satellite guidance, navigation, control systems, and autonomous robotics.

The commercial satellite servicing market has long faced challenges due to the complexity and cost of developing and operating vehicles capable of RPOD operations. Historically, such missions were carried out by government agencies and involved customized hardware interfaces. Starfish aims to address these barriers through miniaturization and the use of advanced software-driven solutions.

A successful demonstration by Otter Pup 2 would be a significant proof-of-concept for Starfish’s approach. It would not only establish the technical viability of autonomous, software-led servicing operations, but also position the company to carry out upcoming missions for high-profile clients including NASA and the U.S. Department of Defense.

The implications of this mission extend beyond the company’s immediate roadmap. If the docking is completed as planned, it could signal a new phase for satellite operations—one where servicing, repositioning, and life-extension missions are accessible on commercial terms, potentially altering how future satellites are designed and deployed.