SkyYield / Our first manufacturing programme
A path from process
to orbital production.
Putting the wider OrbiSky foundation to work: connect the payload, control the process and build toward repeatable orbital operations.
Discuss your payloadGlass-processing concept artwork. Programme in development.
01 / Feasibility
Start with
the process.
ZBLAN fluoride glass is the first candidate investigated for SkyYield.
In February 2026, the UK Space Agency announced a commissioned OrbiSky study to design a payload for processing ZBLAN in microgravity.
The work establishes a feasibility and payload-design programme. Qualification and in-orbit production remain future stages.
Read the UK Space Agency announcement02 / Applications & evidence
A potential advantage.
A measurable test.
The goal is useful material for customers on Earth.
ZBLAN fibre has potential applications in optical communications, medical imaging, infrared photonics and sensing.
Microgravity can reduce crystallisation during fibre drawing. Fewer light-scattering defects could mean lower signal loss, depending on material and process conditions.
SkyYield would compare future microgravity-produced samples with matched ground controls to assess the benefit for each application.
This is a proposed verification approach, not demonstrated SkyYield manufacturing performance. Read NASA’s research background.
Ground baseline
Reference samples
Characterise the material and record the process conditions.
Future microgravity run
Comparison samples
Match material and measurement methods; document process differences.
Measured comparison
Does the advantage hold?
- Optical loss
- Material structure
- Repeatability across runs
Assess against the requirements of the intended application.
03 / Development
Each stage earns
the next.
- Completed / Ground software
Simulation & device interfaces
Process simulation, run records and telemetry/command interfaces with a virtual reference device are implemented. This does not establish physical manufacturing performance.
- Next / Development
Ground process testing
Integrate representative process hardware, characterise samples and establish repeatable ground baselines.
- Ambition / Future
In-orbit demonstration
Qualify a payload for a future microgravity process demonstration, verifying performance, environmental suitability and mission safety. This depends on qualification and a suitable flight opportunity; no flight is confirmed.
04 / Shared foundation
One programme.
Wider possibilities.
SkyYield is the first manufacturing application of technology designed to support different payloads and missions.
Current development includes mission operations, device integration interfaces, process supervision and execution records. Research experiments and other payloads can inform the same operational foundation.
SkyYield has not flown. Mission timing depends on technical verification, partners and funding.
Explore the technologyBring your ambition.
Bring your process.
Build the next step.
A payload to integrate. A process to automate.
An experiment to take further.