Orbital Refueling Systems

Extending mission range, reducing cost, and redefining space logistics through in-space propellant transfer and orbital depot infrastructure.

Redefining Mission Architecture

Traditional missions are bound by the fuel they carry from Earth. Our orbital refueling infrastructure changes that equation — enabling long-duration missions, multi-orbit maneuvers, and return journeys through in-space fuel transfer. With propellant depots in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and cislunar space, our architecture supports reusable launch vehicles, lunar cargo missions, and deep-space exploration at lower cost and greater flexibility.

Key Advantages

🚀 Massively Extends Range: Beyond-LEO missions no longer limited by launch fuel mass.
🔁 Enables Vehicle Reuse: Trishul and PADMA can perform round-trips and orbital restarts.
🛰️ Modular Depot Design: Flexible interface standards for fuel, cryogenics, and docking.
♻️ Reduces Launch Costs: Payloads are launched dry and fueled in orbit, reducing lift mass.
🌕 Supports Lunar Logistics: Cislunar orbit refueling for cargo and crewed landers.

Technical Overview

Fuel Types Supported

Liquid Oxygen (LOX)
Liquid Methane (LCH4)
Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) – with advanced insulation and boil-off control

Docking & Transfer

Soft-dock and hard-dock capable
Standardized cryogenic umbilicals
Autonomous and assisted fluid transfer

Depot Architecture

Pressurized & unpressurized tank modules
Thermally regulated shadow-mounted tanks
In-orbit boil-off management

Renderings & Concept Demonstration

Concept rendering: Modular Orbital Depot with Trishul and PADMA interfaces

Simulation: Autonomous fluid transfer sequence between depot and Trishul upper stage

Lunar Gateway-compatible depot for lunar orbit refueling missions

Use Case Scenarios

🛰️ Reusable crew shuttles with refuelable return stages
🌖 Lunar lander top-ups before descent or return
🚀 Dry-mass heavy payload launches with in-orbit fueling
🛠️ Pre-deployment of depot modules before crewed missions
🪐 Future deep-space mission staging via depot chains

Development Roadmap

Phase 1: Fluid transfer testbed validation (Completed)
Phase 2: Microgravity propellant dynamics simulation (Ongoing)
Phase 3: In-orbit LOX-Methane depot prototype launch (Planned)
Phase 4: Cislunar depot integration with PADMA (Target: 2027)

Empowering a Refueled Space Economy

Orbital refueling is not a feature — it’s a foundation. As we move from launch-based access to orbital permanence, our systems aim to turn space travel into infrastructure-driven logistics. Gatkul Aerospace is building the pipes of the space economy — one transfer, one mission, one future at a time.