SpaceMiningData
CompanyIsraelActive

Helios

Israeli company, set up in 2018 out of an Israel Space Agency innovation workshop, developing molten regolith electrolysis to extract oxygen and metals from lunar regolith; it announced lunar demonstration agreements with ispace (2021, for ispace's second and third missions) and OHB's LSAS lander (2021), none of which has flown. Its website now leads with terrestrial green-iron production (the 'Helios cycle') while keeping lunar oxygen as a product line.

Claimed

Resources and evidence

Each resource shows the highest step primary sources support. How the ladder works.

ResourceEvidenceMeaning
OxygenClaimedsays it will
Metals (general)Claimedsays it will
RegolithClaimedsays it will

Demonstrated

Ground development only: company and press state it tested its reactor concept with lunar simulant developed at the University of Central Florida. No lunar flight: the ispace Mission 2 lander (launched January 2025) payload list does not include Helios.

Claimed or planned

Helios states it is 'developing technologies to extract oxygen from lunar regolith' via a molten regolith electrolysis reactor that separates oxides 'into oxygen and essential metals'. Announced flight plans (not realized as of 2026-09-25): Lunar Extractor-1 on ispace landers by end-2023 and mid-2024; technology on the first three OHB LSAS missions 'starting in 2025'. Selected by DARPA for the LunA-10 lunar architecture study (2023).

Facts

Headquarters
Israel
Type
Company
Founded
2018
Status
Activeas of 2026-09-25. Company website live on 2026-09-25 listing 2026 industry events; no 2025-2026 lunar-specific announcement was found. A dedicated search for later lunar news was not completed.
Roles
Processing / ISRU
Targets
Moon
Also known as
Helios Project; HELIOS
Website
heliosmatters.com

Dated events

Amounts are shown one at a time as each source states them. They are never added together.

  1. 2023-12-05

    DARPA selects Helios for the LunA-10 lunar architecture study

    Government awardHeliosWith Firefly Aerospace, Honeybee Robotics, Blue Origin

    DARPA listed Helios among 14 companies selected for its LunA-10 capability study on integrated lunar infrastructure, which DARPA says does not fund hardware construction or transport to the Moon; Firefly Aerospace, Honeybee Robotics and Blue Origin were also selected.

    Sources (2) and evidence gaps
    1. [1]DARPA selects companies for LunA-10 Capability Study (integrated lunar infrastructure framework)
      DARPAGovernment recordPublished 2023-12-05Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: subject ids, date
      DARPA has selected the following companies for LunA-10: Blue Origin CisLunar Industries Crescent Space Services LLC Fibertek, Inc. Firefly Aerospace GITAI Helios Honeybee Robotics ICON
      Quote matched the source text when accessed.
    2. [2]DARPA selects companies for LunA-10 Capability Study (integrated lunar infrastructure framework)
      DARPAGovernment recordPublished 2023-12-05Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: summary
      LunA-10 will not fund technology construction, transportation to the lunar surface, or integration with lunar delivery vehicles
      Quote matched the source text when accessed.
    • Award value per performer not stated.
  2. 2022-08-09

    Helios-Eta Space partnership on lunar oxygen liquefaction

    AgreementHelios

    Helios announced a partnership with Florida-based Eta Space to plan a lunar oxygen production and liquefaction plant, with Eta Space handling cryogenic storage of oxygen from the Helios reactor.

    Sources (2)
    1. [1]Israeli space tech startup Helios to make oxygen on Moon (republication of a Times of Israel article by Ricky Ben-David)
      Madan (source: The Times of Israel)PressPublished 2022-08-28Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: summary, date
      Israeli space tech startup Helios announced a partnership this month with Florida's Eta Space to create and store oxygen on the Moon
      Quote matched the source text when accessed.
    2. [2]Helios and Eta Space Combine Technologies to Extract and Store Liquid Oxygen on the Moon
      Helios (release distributed by PR Newswire)Company statementPublished 2022-08-09Accessed 2026-09-26Supports: summary
      to develop an integrated lunar oxygen production and liquefaction plant, a critical step toward a sustainable cislunar industry.
      Quote matched the source text when accessed.

Open evidence gaps

  • Registered legal name not confirmed on a primary record (directories use 'Helios Project').
  • No 2025-2026 primary statement on the status of the ispace or OHB LSAS flight plans.
  • Current headquarters address not stated on the company site; ISA page cites offices in Israel and Florida; press gives Tzur Yigal, Israel (summarizer-read only).

Sources

13 sources
  1. [1]Lunar Oxygen
    HeliosCompany statementAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity claimed, resources
    Helios is developing technologies to extract oxygen from lunar regolith
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  2. [2]Lunar Oxygen
    HeliosCompany statementAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity claimed, resources, role
    By melting and electrolyzing the abundant oxides scattered across the lunar surface, the reactor efficiently separates them into oxygen and essential metals such as iron, aluminum, titanium, and others.
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  3. [3]Our Story
    HeliosCompany statementAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: summary
    Helios began as a space technology company with the bold mission to extract oxygen from the moon.
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  4. [4]Our Story
    HeliosCompany statementAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: summary
    produces iron from iron ore, using mostly thermal energy, while emitting only oxygen
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  5. [5]Our Story
    HeliosCompany statementAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: status
    Scrap Supplements and Alternative Ironmaking March 9-11, 2026 Orlando, Florida, USA
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  6. [6]Israeli space tech startup Helios to make oxygen on Moon (republication of a Times of Israel article by Ricky Ben-David)
    Madan (source: The Times of Israel)PressPublished 2022-08-28Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: founded year
    Helios was set up in 2018 in an innovation workshop held by the Israeli Space Agency during Israel's Space Week that year.
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  7. [7]Israeli Startup to Produce Oxygen from Lunar Soil (page marked updated 12.07.2023)
    Israel Space AgencyGovernment recordAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity claimed
    has been awarded funding from the Israeli Space Agency and the Israeli Ministry of Energy to develop a system that will be launched in two space missions over the next three years
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  8. [8]Israeli Startup to Produce Oxygen from Lunar Soil (page marked updated 12.07.2023)
    Israel Space AgencyGovernment recordAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: headquarters country
    Helios has offices in Israel and in Florida, USA.
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  9. [9]Israel's Helios to ride on ispace lunar lander to make oxygen on the Moon
    ROOM, The Space JournalPressPublished 2021-07-26Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity demonstrated
    the company has simulated most of the conditions on the Moon using Moon-like sand developed by the University of Central Florida
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  10. [10]Israel's Helios to ride on ispace lunar lander to make oxygen on the Moon
    ROOM, The Space JournalPressPublished 2021-07-26Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity claimed
    deliver Helios' Lunar Extractor-1 reactor to the lunar surface onboard ispace's lander by the end of 2023 and mid 2024
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  11. [11]Israeli space tech startup Helios to make oxygen on Moon (republication of a Times of Israel article by Ricky Ben-David)
    Madan (source: The Times of Israel)PressPublished 2022-08-28Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity claimed
    Helios signed a deal last year with European multinational tech corporation OHB SE to deliver its technology to produce oxygen and metals on the Moon aboard the lunar landing system LSAS (Lunar Surface Access Service).
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  12. [12]HAKUTO-R Mission 2 (mission page)
    ispaceCompany statementAccessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity demonstrated
    Takasago Thermal Engineering Payload: Water electrolyzer equipment National Central University, Taiwan Payload: Deep space radiation probe
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.
  13. [13]DARPA selects companies for LunA-10 Capability Study (integrated lunar infrastructure framework)
    DARPAGovernment recordPublished 2023-12-05Accessed 2026-09-25Supports: resource activity claimed
    DARPA has selected the following companies for LunA-10: Blue Origin CisLunar Industries Crescent Space Services LLC Fibertek, Inc. Firefly Aerospace GITAI Helios Honeybee Robotics ICON
    Quote matched the source text when accessed.