Several companies are exploring ways to send spacecraft into orbit without relying on traditional rocket boosters.] One example is Spin Launch, which hopes to eventually fling satellites into space using a giant centrifuge. Another is Green Launch, aiming to propel payloads directly into orbit with a space cannon.

Now, a new US-based player, Auriga Space, has joined this effort. The company is developing a magnetic launch track powered by electricity, where powerful magnets accelerate a vehicle to six times the speed of sound before launching it skyward.Auriga Space recently secured $6 million in funding to advance this magnetic launch system.

Figure 1. Space Ramp.

Auriga Space’s magnetic ramp

A large part of a rocket’s weight comes from the propellant it carries to reach orbit. Auriga Space wants to reduce this dependency dramatically. Their concept uses a steep ramp at the end of the magnetic track to propel rockets upward, so the vehicle only needs to ignite its engine briefly to complete the journey into orbit. Figure 1 shows Space Ramp.

The track itself is designed to be rapidly reusable. According to the company, modern advances in power electronics have made this system more achievable [1]. Although earlier maglev launches concepts—sometimes referred to as “space elevators”—have been proposed before, they never moved beyond early stages.

In an interview with TechCrunch, Auriga’s founder and CEO Winnie Lai highlighted that “less than 2% of the rocket’s mass actually reaches space. Our ultimate goal is to make launches more efficient. By doing that, we can lower costs and enable more frequent missions.”

Auriga plans to first target hypersonic test customers. Next year, it will introduce two systems: Prometheus, a small indoor lab-scale track, and Thor, a larger outdoor accelerator for full-scale hypersonic testing. The fully orbital system, Zeus, is planned for a later stage.

Focusing on responsive launch and hypersonic testing

Investors appear confident in Auriga Space’s vision. As reported by TechCrunch, the company quietly closed a $4.6 million seed round earlier this year, led by European investor OTB Ventures. Additionally, Auriga received $1.4 million in new contracts from AFWERX and SpaceWERX.

Auriga is still refining its vehicle design. Similar to SpinLaunch—which faced challenges managing the extreme G-forces on payloads—Auriga Space will also need to balance launch speeds carefully to protect its payloads.

If successful, Auriga’s magnetic launch track could open the door to faster, cheaper, and more frequent access to space.

Reference:

1. https://interestingengineering.com/space/maglev-ramp-fire-rockets-to-orbit-with-no-fuel/li>

Cite this article:

Keerthana S (2025), US Company’s Maglev Launches Ramp Aims to Hurl Rockets into Orbit Using Minimal Fuel, AnaTechMaz, pp.473