Astra
Small launch and satellite propulsion
- Founded
- 2016
- Headquarters
- Alameda, California
Overview
Astra is an American aerospace company founded in October 2016 by Chris Kemp and Dr. Adam London and headquartered in Alameda, California. It set out to build very low-cost, dedicated small-satellite launch vehicles, beginning with suborbital test rockets and the orbital-class Rocket 3 family.
On 19 November 2021 Astra reached orbit for the first time with its Rocket 3.3 vehicle (LV0007), after several failed attempts. The company went public on Nasdaq via a SPAC merger in July 2021, but a string of launch failures, including a NASA TROPICS mission, led it to retire Rocket 3 in 2022 and refocus on a larger next-generation rocket, Rocket 4.
Astra was taken private by its founders in July 2024 and delisted from Nasdaq. As of 2026 it remains an active private company running a growing electric-propulsion business (the Astra Spacecraft Engine, a Hall-effect thruster from its 2021 Apollo Fusion acquisition) while continuing to develop Rocket 4 and a mobile launch system, with a test flight targeted for 2026.
Timeline
- 2016
Company founded
Astra is founded in Alameda, California by Chris Kemp and Dr. Adam London to build low-cost small-satellite launch vehicles.
- 2018
First test launch
Astra conducts its first suborbital test flight (LV0001) from Kodiak, Alaska, beginning the Rocket development program.
- Jul 2021
Goes public on Nasdaq
Astra begins trading as ASTR after a SPAC merger with Holicity, valuing the company at about $2.1 billion.
- Nov 2021
First successful orbit
Rocket 3.3 vehicle LV0007 reaches orbit and delivers a test payload for the US Space Force.
- Jul 2024
Taken private
Founders Chris Kemp and Adam London complete a take-private transaction, delisting Astra from Nasdaq.
Frequently asked questions
Rockets
Astra Rocket 3
7 launches
Astra Rocket 4
Upcoming launches
Recent launches
TROPICS-1
Jun 12, 2022, 5:43 PM
Astra Space
Astra Rocket 3
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
Spaceflight Astra-1
Mar 15, 2022, 4:22 PM
Astra Space
Astra Rocket 3
Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
ELaNa 41
Feb 10, 2022, 8:00 PM
Astra Space
Astra Rocket 3
Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA
STP-27AD2
Nov 20, 2021, 6:16 AM
Astra Space
Astra Rocket 3
Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
STP-27AD1
Aug 28, 2021, 10:35 PM
Astra Space
Astra Rocket 3
Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA
Flight 2
Dec 15, 2020, 8:55 PM
Astra Space
Astra Rocket 3
Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska, USA