The Exploration Company

The Nyx vehicle is a classic model, composed of a cylindrical service module and a conical space capsule, the only one capable of returning to Earth. It measures 4 meters in diameter with a total mass of 8 tonnes.[6] It must be capable of carrying 4,000 kg of payload into low Earth orbit for a maximum of 6 months, divided into 2,500 kg of pressurized cargo and 100 kg of unpressurized cargo on board the capsule which will be returned to Earth, the service module of the vehicle which must be capable of transporting 1,400 kg of unpressurized cargo.[8] Nyx must be able to fly freely for up to six months, in order to carry experiments, and must be able to dock with space stations in order to deliver cargo.

In the future, Nyx must be able to deliver up to 5,000 kg of cargo to lunar orbit (Lunar Gateway station) and even deposit cargo on the surface of the Moon and perform surface-to-surface flights on the Moon.

Although the company's first missions are cargo missions, Nyx is designed to eventually be able to transport humans.[14]

Nyx's interfaces are open, and its operating system is open-source software, which contributes to other space exploration projects whose technologies can inter-operate.[15][16][17] The Nyx capsule is modular in nature with several configuration options for different mission objectives and destinations, while being launcher-agnostic.[18][19][20] The Exploration Company is also pioneering sustainable space exploration: Nyx is reusable (up to five times[21]), can be refueled in orbit, and uses green propellants for altitude control and docking (high-test peroxide), as well as cryogenic bio-methane & oxygen for reaching lunar destinations.[22][23][24][25] Liquid methane must power the Huracan engine currently under development, which must be able to be produced more than 80% by 3D printing.[26]

The Exploration Company plans to develop two smaller-scale demonstrators. The first, nicknamed Bikini, is a capsule 60 centimeters in diameter weighing approximately 40 kilograms.[6][27] It must be launched on the inaugural flight of Ariane 6 and validate the general profile of the capsule and thermal protection. However, the company is also talking about an Indian rocket, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, for a launch that would be less subject to Ariane 6 development delays.[28][13][29] The second demonstrator, named Mission Possible, is a larger capsule measuring 2.5 m in diameter and weighing 1,600 kg, capable of carrying 300 kg of payload (already reserved by the European Space Agency, the German space agency and French space agency). It must be launched by a Falcon 9 in 2024 and validate a more controlled reentry with propulsion and a parachute.[6][27] The full-scale version, named Mission Odyssey, is planned to fly in 2026.[30]