Agile Space to supply AM thrusters for Nyx mission to ISS
Agile Space Industries, a space propulsion technology company headquartered in Durango, Colorado, USA, has been contracted by The Exploration Company (TEC), based in Munich, Germany, and Bordeaux, France, to deliver flight thrusters for Nyx, a European modular space capsule that aims to dock with the International Space Station (ISS) in 2028. The contract marks a new international partnership for Agile and expands its growing role in global civil space missions.
Agile will supply its additively manufactured DS250 thrusters, 250-Newton bipropellant rocket thrusters designed for high-reliability in-space manoeuvring. These thrusters will be integrated into TEC’s Nyx vehicle, a modular and reusable capsule developed for various orbital missions, including cargo transport to low Earth orbit and docking with the ISS.
“We’re proud to support The Exploration Company’s vision for scalable space exploration,” said Chris Pearson, CEO of Agile Space Industries. “The Nyx mission to the ISS represents the kind of international collaboration and uncompromising rapid delivery that Agile is built for. Our DS250 thruster offers a reliable, high-performance solution tailored to TEC’s unique requirements—and we’re excited to see it fly.”
Tackling a challenging thermal environment
Unlike most in-space thrusters that radiate heat into free space, the DS250s will be encapsulated within the outer mold line of the Nyx capsule. This poses a significant thermal management challenge for both the vehicle and propulsion system. Meeting this design requirement demanded close collaboration between TEC’s spacecraft team and Agile’s propulsion engineers.
To validate this integration approach, TEC tasked Agile with an intensive schedule: design, manufacture, and hot-fire-test a first iteration of the Nyx thruster meeting key performance parameters within just three months.
Hélène Huby, CEO of The Exploration Company, shared, “When we asked Agile to develop and prove out a brand-new thruster in 3 months, and they delivered beautiful performance on the test stand in 10 weeks, we knew we had the right propulsion partner.”
Within 10 weeks, Agile designed, additively manufactured, assembled, and hot-fire-tested the DS250 thruster at its Sunshine hypergolic test stand in Durango, Colorado. The demo campaign validated key performance metrics, including thrust, pulse-mode operation, longevity, and encapsulated thermal operation.
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Technology with flight heritage
The DS250 thruster uses monomethylhydrazine (MMH) and NTO (MON3) propellants. The radiatively cooled thruster operates in steady-state and pulse-mode, controlled by direct-acting solenoid valves. Agile leverages metal Additive Manufacturing for multiple components of the thruster, speeding development and time to delivery.
The thruster integrates Agile’s proprietary technologies in injector design and AM and will be qualified in-house at the company’s vacuum hot fire test facilities in Durango, Colorado.
Expanding access to space
The Exploration Company’s Nyx capsule aims to expand access to space for government and commercial customers by offering reusable, scalable transportation to and from low Earth orbit and beyond. The upcoming ISS docking mission marks a critical milestone in the roadmap.
This partnership further strengthens Agile’s position as a leading US provider of in-space propulsion, with systems flying across both commercial and civil space programmes.
The Exploration Company is developing Nyx as a reusable capsule capable of transporting payloads to low Earth orbit (LEO) and beyond. The upcoming ISS mission is a key step toward that goal, enabling greater access to space for government and commercial users.
This partnership further strengthens Agile’s growing portfolio of propulsion systems being delivered for civil, defence and commercial missions, reinforcing the company’s position as a leading US provider of in-space mobility solutions.
