Orbital data center tracker
Next orbital-compute launch
Transporter 18 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare)
NET 2026-10-01 18:18 UTC · Falcon 9 Block 5 · Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA · status: Go for Launch (The Space Devs Launch Library 2, 30 Sep 2026).
On board: Google's Project Suncatcher (4 Google Trillium-generation TPUs).
Every tracked project
Status, hardware and dates as the sources state them; blank means nobody has published it. Numbers in the last column are the sources.
| Company | Project | Hardware | Launch | Status | Funding (public) | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Suncatcher: first TPU prototype satellite | 4 Google Trillium-generation TPUs | 1 Oct 2026 (Transporter-18, window opens 18:18 UTC) | scheduled | – | [1] [2] [3] | |
| Project Suncatcher: two prototype satellites with cross-links | Google TPUs (per satellite count not stated) | early 2027 (target) | planned | – | [1] [2] | |
| Starcloud | Starcloud-1 | 1 NVIDIA H100 GPU | 2 Nov 2025 | in orbit | $170M Series A at a $1.1B valuation (Mar 2026), led by Benchmark with EQT Ventures | [1] [2] [3] |
| Starcloud | Starcloud-2 | – | later in 2026 (company, Mar 2026) | planned | $170M Series A at a $1.1B valuation (Mar 2026) | [1] |
| Crusoe | Crusoe Cloud on a Starcloud satellite | – | late 2026 (planned); GPU capacity from orbit by early 2027 | planned | – | [1] |
| SpaceX (with xAI) | Orbital data center constellation (FCC SAT-LOA-20260108-00016) | – | FCC application filed 30 Jan 2026 | filed | – | [1] [2] |
| Blue Origin | Project Sunrise | – | FCC application filed March 2026 | filed | – | [1] |
| Axiom Space | Orbital data center nodes (first two) | commercial off-the-shelf compute with 2.5 Gbps optical links | 11 Jan 2026 | in orbit | – | [1] |
| Axiom Space | Data Center Unit-1 (AxDCU-1) on the ISS | Red Hat Device Edge compute unit | fall 2025 (deployed to the ISS) | deployed | – | [1] |
| ADA Space and Zhejiang Lab | Three-Body Computing Constellation (first 12 satellites) | on-board AI processors (per-satellite specs not in source) | 14 May 2025 | in orbit | – | [1] [2] |
| Aetherflux | Galactic Brain | solar-powered AI compute satellite (GPU details not stated) | Q1 2027 (target) | announced | – | [1] |
| Lonestar Data Holdings | Freedom lunar data center payload (IM-2) | small data center payload with Phison storage | 27 Feb 2025 00:16 UTC (IM-2) | flown | – | [1] [2] |
| Sophia Space | TILE orbital computing modules | tile-shaped satellite compute modules with integrated solar power and radiative cooling | – | development | $10M seed (Feb 2026) | [1] |
| NVIDIA | Vera Rubin Space-1 Module | Vera Rubin Space-1 Module for orbital data centers | announced 16 Mar 2026 (GTC); availability not stated | announced | – | [1] |
Orbits of the compute satellites
CelesTrak GP elements for every tracked satellite with a public NORAD ID; new satellites appear here once CelesTrak lists them.
| Object | NORAD | Perigee × apogee | Inclination | Period | Epoch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STARCLOUD-1 | 66303 | 495 × 503 km | 45.4° | 94.6 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 A | 63982 | 485 × 520 km | 97.4° | 94.7 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 B | 63983 | 429 × 438 km | 97.4° | 93.2 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 C | 63984 | 484 × 521 km | 97.4° | 94.7 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 D | 63985 | 485 × 491 km | 97.4° | 94.4 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 E | 63986 | 497 × 508 km | 97.4° | 94.7 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 F | 63987 | 498 × 506 km | 97.4° | 94.7 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 G | 63988 | 476 × 491 km | 97.4° | 94.3 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 H | 63989 | 438 × 446 km | 97.4° | 93.4 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 J | 63990 | 487 × 494 km | 97.4° | 94.4 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 K | 63991 | 497 × 508 km | 97.4° | 94.7 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 L | 63992 | 498 × 507 km | 97.4° | 94.7 min | 2026-09-30 |
| SCS-01 M | 63993 | 477 × 482 km | 97.4° | 94.2 min | 2026-09-30 |
Upcoming rideshare and compute launches
| NET | Mission | Provider | Rocket | Status | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-01 | Transporter 18 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare) | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | Go | compute |
| 2026-10-31 | Bandwagon 5 (Dedicated Mid-Inclination Rideshare) | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2026-12-31 | VICTUS SURGO | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2027-02-28 | Transporter 19 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare) | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2027-03-31 | Nova-C IM-3 | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2027-04-30 | Bandwagon 6 (Dedicated Mid-Inclination Rideshare) | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2027-06-30 | Transporter 20 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare) | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2027-10-31 | Transporter 21 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare) | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
| 2027-12-31 | Exolaunch Exo-1 | SpaceX | Falcon 9 Block 5 | TBD | rideshare |
FAQ
What is Google's Project Suncatcher?
A Google research moonshot exploring solar-powered satellites with TPU AI chips. Its first prototype carries 4 Google Trillium-generation TPUs and is scheduled for 1 Oct 2026 (Transporter-18, window opens 18:18 UTC), developed with Planet; two more prototype satellites with cross-links target early 2027. Sources: blog.google (24 Sep 2026), Planet (4 Nov 2025).
Is there already an AI data center in orbit?
Small ones. Starcloud-1 (1 NVIDIA H100 GPU, launched 2 Nov 2025) is in orbit as NORAD 66303; Axiom Space's first two orbital data center nodes launched 11 Jan 2026; China's Three-Body Computing Constellation put its first 12 computing satellites up on 14 May 2025. 3 tracked projects have hardware in orbit today.
Which companies are building orbital data centers?
Tracked here: ADA Space and Zhejiang Lab, Aetherflux, Axiom Space, Blue Origin, Crusoe, Google, Lonestar Data Holdings, NVIDIA, Sophia Space, SpaceX (with xAI), Starcloud. Each row links the company page or news report it comes from.
Where does this data come from?
Company pages and reputable news for the tracker (linked per row, unknown values left blank), The Space Devs Launch Library 2 for launches, CelesTrak for orbit elements. Refreshed daily by CyberMax. Company names identify projects only; no affiliation or endorsement is implied.