A New Kind of Space Race
For decades, the image of a space launch has been singular: a massive rocket climbing skyward on a pillar of fire and smoke. It's an expensive and inefficient process, with the vast majority of a rocket's mass being the fuel required just to fight Earth's
gravity. Oakland-based startup Longshot Space, founded in 2020 by CEO Mike Grace and CTO Nathan Saichek, is betting it has a better way. Their audacious goal is to replace the rocket with a ground-based kinetic launch system—essentially, an enormous cannon that flings payloads into space at hypersonic speeds. The economic argument is the core of their mission. While SpaceX has impressively lowered launch costs to around $3,000 per kilogram for its Falcon 9 rocket, Longshot claims its system could one day achieve a mind-boggling $10 per kilogram.
How the 'Space Gun' Works
Longshot's technology is a multi-injection gas accelerator. Instead of gunpowder, it uses bursts of compressed gas to propel a payload through a very long tube. A projectile carrying the satellite would be loaded into the barrel, which is held under a vacuum. An initial burst of gas provides the first kick, and as the projectile speeds down the tube, additional injections of gas from the sides provide successive boosts, accelerating it to incredible velocities. The company's current 120-foot prototype in Alameda, California, has already conducted over 100 test launches, pushing 100-kilogram payloads past Mach 4, or four times the speed of sound. To reach orbit, however, a payload needs to hit speeds closer to Mach 25. The projectile would not go directly into a stable orbit from the gun alone; a small, integrated rocket motor would fire after exiting the atmosphere to perform the final orbital insertion.
Solving the Rocket Equation
The primary advantage of this method is that it sidesteps what engineers call the "tyranny of the rocket equation." Because a rocket has to carry all its own fuel, most of its energy is spent lifting fuel that will be used later in the flight. By keeping the launch system on the ground, Longshot can use abundant and cheap terrestrial power. This flips the economics of space launch on its head. Instead of a multi-million-dollar vehicle that is partially or fully expended, the launch infrastructure is a permanent, reusable asset on the ground. This model promises not only lower costs but also much higher launch frequency—potentially multiple times a day, a capability that is impossible with traditional rockets that require extensive preparation between flights.
From Hypersonic Testing to Orbit
Building a cannon that's miles long and can accelerate a payload to orbital velocity is a monumental engineering challenge. To bridge the gap financially and technologically, Longshot has a clever interim business plan: hypersonic testing. The U.S. Department of Defense and other agencies have a pressing need to test materials and vehicles at hypersonic speeds (above Mach 5), a process that currently requires expensive and infrequent rocket launches. Longshot's accelerator offers a cheaper, faster alternative. The company has already secured funding from the U.S. Air Force and investors like Sam Altman and South Park Commons. By serving the defense market for hypersonic testing, Longshot can generate revenue and refine its technology while building towards its ultimate orbital goal, which it hopes to achieve as early as 2029.
The Challenges Ahead
The name 'Longshot' is fitting. The company faces immense hurdles. The primary challenge is scaling the technology. To reach orbital velocity, the launch tube would need to be several miles long, likely between 10 to 15 kilometers. Construction is planned for a remote site in Nevada, with tests aiming to achieve Mach 15 speeds within the next couple of years. Furthermore, the payload itself must be able to withstand the incredible g-forces of acceleration inside the barrel. While many modern electronics are surprisingly resilient, this will limit the types of satellites that can be launched. Despite the challenges, the demand for cheap and frequent access to low Earth orbit is exploding, with tens of thousands of new satellites planned for launch in the coming years. If Longshot can prove its technology works at scale, the market is waiting.
