DeepSpace-2
AstroForge's second deep-space spacecraft, a 200-kilogram vehicle with Hall-effect electric propulsion, intended to ride share on the Falcon 9 launch of Intuitive Machines' IM-3 and then rendezvous with and image a metallic near-Earth asteroid that has not yet been named. Flight hardware assembly was reported complete in June 2026 and integrated testing was under way; earlier descriptions of an AstroForge 'Vestri' mission, treated here as the same spacecraft by inference, said it would land on or dock with an asteroid, which current operator pages no longer state. AstroForge says it purchased a 200 kg rideshare mass budget from Intuitive Machines for a shared SpaceX launch; this is an arranged rideshare, not carriage by the IM-3 lander.
Objective. Rendezvous with a near-Earth metallic asteroid and capture high-resolution imagery of its shape, structure and clues to mineral composition (operator statement).
Facts
- Kind
- Spacecraft
- Mission type
- Prospecting
- Target
- Near-Earth asteroidNot selected; operator describes a near-Earth M-type (metallic) asteroid, and press reports about 28 candidates
- Launch
- Planned 2027 Q1 (target)Announcement date not recorded. Record checked 2026-10-28.
- Launch vehicle
- Falcon 9 (rideshare with Intuitive Machines IM-3, per press)
- Phase
- In developmentScoped schedule review on 2026-11-01: AstroForge's homepage explicitly targets the first quarter of 2027, while its dedicated DeepSpace-2 page retains fourth-quarter-2026 body text under a LAUNCHING 2027 banner. The date field records the homepage's stated target and does not resolve the conflicting operator text. No launch-provider manifest naming DeepSpace-2 is established, so the phase remains in development; older source and identity gaps remain open.
- Outcome
- Not applicable
- Why it is included
- Stated resource objective
How this launch date changed
Recorded change: the plan before → the plan after, oldest first.
- 2025-08-11: 2025 (as Vestri on IM-3) → early 2026Schedule slip [8]
- 2026-06-03: early 2026 → 2026-Q4Schedule slip [15]
- 2026-09-26: 2026-Q4 → 2027Schedule slip [12]
- 2026-11-01: 2027 → 2027-Q1 (operator homepage target; conflicting mission-page text retained)Source update [18]
Only changes recorded here are listed. The oldest date shown may not be the first plan ever announced, and a date with no recorded change may still have moved. A plan is not a launch.
What comes next
Next recorded dates are plans, not results.
Launch: Planned 2027 Q1 (target)Announcement date not recorded. Record checked 2026-10-28.
Participants
Operators, payload owners, carriers and customers are recorded separately.
| Organization | Role |
|---|---|
| AstroForge | Operator |
| SpaceX | Launch provider |
Resources and evidence
| Resource | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Metals (general) | Targeted |
Dated events
- 2025-08-11
Safran to supply electric propulsion for AstroForge's Vestri mission
Safran Defense & Space announced it was selected by AstroForge to deliver two EPS X00 electric propulsion systems for the Vestri asteroid mission, then scheduled for early 2026.
Company statements only. No independent or government source is recorded here.
Sources (1) and evidence gaps
- [1]Safran DSI to Supply Electric Propulsion Systems for AstroForge's Upcoming Vestri Asteroid Mission
has been selected by AstroForge to manufacture and deliver two EPS
- Contract value not disclosed.
- Safran has no entity record; counterparty named in summary only.
Open evidence gaps
- Intuitive Machines or SpaceX manifest naming DeepSpace-2 (required before phase can be 'manifested').
- Whether 'Vestri' and DeepSpace-2 are the same spacecraft, and the direction and date of any rename, are not established: AstroForge's 2025-03-06 debrief already calls its second spacecraft DeepSpace-2, while Safran's 2025-08-11 release names an AstroForge 'Vestri' asteroid mission scheduled for early 2026. This record treats them as one spacecraft by inference (matching mass, propulsion supplier, IM-3 ride and timeline).
- Operator timing conflicts remain: the homepage captured 2026-11-01 targets first-quarter 2027, while the dedicated mission page still says fourth-quarter 2026 below a 2027 banner. Retained NASA host-flight and September 2026 press statements have differing precision/timing. No independently confirmed DeepSpace-2 launch date or manifest naming it is established.
- Communications licence for DeepSpace-2.
- Host flight not confirmed: AstroForge describes a ride with Intuitive Machines' IM-3, but no manifest record names it.
- The available participant roles do not describe a rideshare arranger. Intuitive Machines is described in the narrative, without assigning it the unsupported carrier role; no independent manifest confirmation is implied.
Record history
changes to this record's facts, newest first
| Changed | Field | Was | Now | Reason | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-11-03 | participants | Intuitive Machines: carrier | No carrier role assigned to Intuitive Machines; operator-described purchased rideshare mass budget retained in narrative | Correction | [4] |
| 2026-11-01 | launch date | 2027 | 2027-Q1 (operator homepage target; conflicting mission-page text retained) | Source update | [18] |
| 2026-09-26 | launch date | 2026-Q4 | 2027 | Schedule slip | [12] |
| 2026-06-03 | launch date | early 2026 | 2026-Q4 | Schedule slip | [15] |
| 2026-06-03 | objective | Land on or dock with the target asteroid to characterize its composition | Rendezvous with and image a near-Earth metallic asteroid | Source update | [1] |
| 2025-08-11 | launch date | 2025 (as Vestri on IM-3) | early 2026 | Schedule slip | [8] |
Sources
19 excerpts from 13 publicationsOne web address counts as one publication.
Launching in the fourth quarter of 2026, DeepSpace-2 will travel millions of kilometers to rendezvous with a near-Earth asteroid.
DeepSpace-2's payload is a high-resolution monochromatic camera.
Last month, we assembled the major flight hardware of DeepSpace-2 on our integration floor for the first time.
Instead, Intuitive Machines (IM) has purchased a rocket launch from SpaceX to travel to the moon, and we’re essentially hitching a ride by purchasing a ticket from IM. We have purchased a 200kg mass budget from IM.
DeepSpace-2 will be our second spacecraft and is scheduled to launch on the IM3 mission.
Landing legs for its primary mission: landing on a metallic asteroid to measure platinum group metals on the surface
The spacecraft is scheduled to fly onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which is also carrying Intuitive Machines' IM-3 lander to the lunar surface.
- [8]Safran DSI to Supply Electric Propulsion Systems for AstroForge's Upcoming Vestri Asteroid Mission
for the company's upcoming Vestri asteroid mission, scheduled to launch in early 2026
A 200-kg spacecraft called Vestri, which will land on the target asteroid to completely characterize its composition; it will fly on IM-3, expected to launch in 2025.
AstroForge will choose among them closer to launch.
AstroForge is self-funding DeepSpace-2, which Gialich said will cost around $10 million.
LAUNCHING 2027 DEEPSPACE-2 The first commercially viable path to deep space.
Our next mission, DeepSpace-2, will fly Solo in shadow mode.
The next two — Blue Origin’s Mark 1 Endurance and Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C Trinity — are now slated to launch in “the first part of 2027,”
ready for testing and further refinement as we prepare for launch in the fourth quarter of this year.
Early 2027
The company’s third vehicle, DeepSpace-2, is currently set to launch alongside Intuitive Machines’ third moon mission
- [18]AstroForge
Launching in the first quarter of 2027, DeepSpace-2 will travel millions of kilometers to rendezvous with a near-Earth asteroid.
- [19]DeepSpace-2
Launching in the fourth quarter of 2026, DeepSpace-2 will travel millions of kilometers to rendezvous with a near-Earth asteroid.
Cite this record
SpaceMiningData, “DeepSpace-2”, dataset version a00fa2c68a45, built 2026-11-11, https://spaceminingdata.com/missions/astroforge-deepspace-2.html. Record checked 2026-10-28.