AMSTERDAM — Observable Space, a company specializing in optical systems for laser communications and space domain awareness, has raised $90 million in new funding and secured a major contract with the U.S. Space Force.
The company announced May 28 that it closed a $90 million Series A financing round led by Lux Capital, with participation from Upfront Ventures, Detroit Venture Partners, Island Green Capital, RTX Ventures, BRV Capital, and Fathom Fund. The funding will be used to advance development of laser communication technologies, in-space optical systems, and expand international partnerships.
Observable Space builds both ground-based and space-based optical systems designed for applications including broadband laser communications, orbital tracking, and astronomy. The company also develops optical ground stations and deployable telescope systems intended to support high-fidelity space domain awareness operations.
“If you control light, you control space,” said Dan Roelker, co-founder and CEO of Observable Space, describing the company’s vision for optical infrastructure across the space economy. Investors echoed that perspective, highlighting the company’s integrated approach across hardware manufacturing, lasers, systems, and software.
In addition to the funding round, Observable Space also secured an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract from the U.S. Space Force with a maximum potential value of $94 million. The contract includes $22 million in initial task orders and was awarded through the Pentagon’s Accelerate the Procurement and Fielding of Innovative Technologies program.
The contract will support scaling production of deployable optical telescopes used to track objects in orbit and enhance space domain awareness capabilities for the U.S. military. According to defense officials, the systems are intended to provide mobile, off-grid robotic telescope capabilities for high-resolution orbital monitoring.
Observable Space has already demonstrated its laser communication technology in a recent test during support operations for Artemis 2, deploying an optical ground station in Australia in collaboration with Australian National University. The system successfully tracked laser communications from the Orion spacecraft, achieving data rates of 260 megabits per second.
The company’s technology also extends into spacecraft payloads. Its Iguana multispectral imager, a 200-millimeter optical system, is scheduled to fly aboard a spacecraft developed by Apex later this year.
Observable Space currently manufactures optical systems in Adrian, Michigan, and plans to expand production with a new facility in Detroit. Additional engineering and spacecraft design work is conducted from its Los Angeles operations.
Beyond defense and communications applications, the company is also involved in astronomy projects, including the Schmidt Sciences-funded Argus Array. The project will deploy 1,200 small telescopes, which will be manufactured by Observable Space, marking one of the largest coordinated optical telescope arrays of its kind.