A Radically Different Launchpad
The dream of cheaper space access has fueled countless innovations, with companies like SpaceX dramatically lowering costs through reusable rockets. But a new wave of startups believes the next great leap involves getting rid of the rocket almost entirely
for the initial, most energy-intensive part of the journey. Oakland-based Longshot Space is one such pioneer, developing what is essentially a massive space gun. Founded in 2020, the company aims to use a ground-based accelerator to shoot payloads to hypersonic speeds, providing the initial velocity needed to punch through the thickest parts of the atmosphere. The goal is to fundamentally change the economics of space, replacing millions of dollars in propellant with a system that is electrically powered and rapidly reusable.
How to Fire a Satellite Into the Sky
Instead of a rocket engine, Longshot’s technology relies on a very, very long barrel and compressed gas. Inspired by the principles of an experimental World War II supergun, the system uses timed injections of gas along the length of the accelerator tube to push the projectile faster and faster. The company has already tested a 70-foot prototype capable of accelerating a payload past Mach 4. The ultimate vision is a gun stretching up to 12 miles long, capable of firing a 100-kilogram payload into orbit. Once the payload is at altitude and travelling at sufficient speed, a small, attached rocket motor would fire to perform the final orbital insertion burn, circularizing its path around the Earth. This hybrid approach uses the ground-based accelerator for the heavy lifting, saving the onboard rocket for the final, delicate manoeuvre.
The Immense Engineering Challenge
The reason this approach is considered a 'longshot' is due to the brutal physics involved. Any payload launched this way must endure two colossal forces: the extreme acceleration within the barrel and the intense heat and pressure of hitting the dense lower atmosphere at hypersonic speeds. The G-forces are immense, potentially reaching 10,000 times Earth's gravity. This makes the method unsuitable for launching humans or extremely delicate instruments. However, another company in the kinetic launch space, SpinLaunch, has worked with NASA to prove that many standard satellite components can be affordably ruggedized to withstand these exact forces, clearing a major technical hurdle. The challenge then becomes building the enormous ground infrastructure and proving it can operate reliably and safely at a scale never before seen.
The Billion-Dollar Payoff
If Longshot and its competitors can overcome the challenges, the rewards would be transformative. As of 2026, launching a satellite on a reusable SpaceX Falcon 9, the market leader, costs roughly $3,000 per kilogram. SpinLaunch, which uses a giant centrifuge to achieve a similar outcome, projects its costs will be less than half of that. Longshot’s projections are even more audacious, targeting a launch cost of around $150 per kilogram. Such a dramatic price reduction would open up space to a vast new range of commercial and scientific ventures. It would also enable incredibly high launch frequency, with shots potentially happening every hour, a cadence unthinkable with traditional rockets. Furthermore, by eliminating the combustion from the initial launch phase, it offers a path to space with significantly lower direct carbon emissions.
From Drawing Board to Reality
This ambitious venture is not just a paper concept. Longshot has attracted several million dollars in seed funding from prominent investors, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and has also secured contracts with the U.S. Air Force to develop its technology for hypersonic testing. This provides an early revenue stream and a way to prove out its systems on a smaller scale before tackling the grand challenge of an orbital launcher. The company is part of a small but serious movement exploring non-rocket spacelaunch, with the well-funded SpinLaunch being its most notable peer. While SpinLaunch uses a centrifugal accelerator instead of a gun, both companies are betting that ground-based kinetic energy is the key to unlocking the next era of space access.
