Sophisticated spacecraft often operate on outdated computing systems, such as the Perseverance rover running on a PowerPC 750 processor from the late 1990s iMacs.
San Francisco-based Aethero aims to upgrade computing systems in orbit. Their first payload, the stackable MVP AetherNxN, built on an Nvidia Orin processor, will launch on SpaceX’s Transporter-11 rideshare mission this month. The product will be protected by a new radiation shielding material developed by Cosmic Shielding Corporation (CSC), potentially revolutionizing space computing.
Traditionally, space electronics are shielded and radiation-hardened, but AetherNxN’s rad-hardening combined with CSC’s Plasteel shielding allows more advanced AI-capable hardware to function in space’s hostile conditions.
CSC’s Plasteel material, a 3D printed polymer blend, includes radiation-blocking nanoparticles. It reduces radiation exposure and effectively limits “single-event effects,” where ionizing particles damage electronic circuits in space.
Aethero and CSC emphasize the need for advanced shielding to support complex processors in space. They envision applications such as edge processing for Earth observation data and deep space exploration enabled by advanced edge computing in space.
CSC’s CEO, Yanni Barghouty, highlighted the importance of mitigating single-event effects in addition to reducing overall radiation exposure. Both companies see the potential for major advancements in space computing, with AI capabilities bringing Moore’s law into space.
