ATMOS becomes the first private European company to conduct orbital re-entry; big win for sovereign European return capacities

Lichtenau, Germany-based ATMOS Space Cargo (ATMOS), a European space logistics startup, announced that it has conducted the first orbital test flight of its PHOENIX 1 re-entry capsule to and back from Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

“PHOENIX 1 delivered on its objectives and our roadmap. Dedicated people show up, go to work, and get results – we are not here to guess. Completing this mission with a flight-ready capsule in such a short time frame is a major validation of our design and approach under real conditions,” says Sebastian Klaus, CEO and Co-Founder of ATMOS.

PHOENIX 1 launched into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40), Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, on Monday, 21 April 2025, at 20:48 local time, as part of the Bandwagon-3 rideshare mission.

According to the company, the mission successfully met its main goals, including activating key systems and deploying ATMOS’s inflatable heat shield during re-entry.

ATMOS Mission Control in Lichtenau confirms that flight data from the capsule and its payloads has been successfully sent and is now being analyzed.

“PHOENIX 1 was a milestone mission that showcased the incredible capabilities of our team. The successful collection of flight data from Low Earth Orbit is a testament to their precision, resilience, and expertise. This mission proves: we are not only solving the technical challenge of re-entry – we are laying the groundwork for a future where space is accessible, testable, and impactful for innovation here on Earth,” says Marta Oliveira, Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of ATMOS.

Developed under 12 months

PHOENIX 1 was developed and ready for flight in under 12 months.

This mission is crucial to ATMOS’s rapid prototyping and features the innovative Inflatable Heat Shield, which allows payloads to return from space without traditional materials or parachutes.

On its first mission, PHOENIX 1 carried commercial and scientific payloads for microgravity testing from:

– Frontier Space and Imperial College London (UK)

– DLR (German Aerospace Center)

– IDDK (Japan)

Future versions of the capsule are in development to support multi-tonne orbital supplies and dual-use payloads.

“We designed PHOENIX 1 to move fast without compromising core reliability, fundamental for any spacecraft. Thanks to the experience and fast problem-solving skill set our team brings to the workshop, we achieved flight qualification in record time. Building and launching a space-ready capsule in under a year required tight iteration and testing, good communication, and a team spirit beyond expectations. This flight – and the engineering process that led us here – taught us valuable lessons on the design of the next iteration, PHOENIX 2,” says Christian Grimm, Lead Systems Engineer and Co-Founder at ATMOS Space Cargo.

PHOENIX 2 capsule to launch in 2026

These results will support the development of the next-generation PHOENIX 2 capsule, set to launch in 2026.

The company’s current roadmap for PHOENIX 2 is confirmed to feature its propulsion system, enabling the capsule to choose its re-entry trajectory and splashdown zone, enabling swift recovery.

“We’re on track to build PHOENIX 2 – the next-gen capsule capable of setting its return trajectory, unlocking the most flexible, cost-efficient, and reliable end-to-end space logistics platform in the space industry,” adds Klaus.