Microgravity pharmaceutical processing
Growing drug crystals in weightlessness inside space capsules
El Segundo company that flies small capsules to orbit, processes drug materials in weightlessness, and brings them back to Earth. The same capsules double as a hypersonic test bed for the U.S. military.
Products, by altitude
Low Earth orbit · 160–2,000 km
Testing ![]()
Edge of space · 80–160 km
In service ![]()
Hypersonic reentry testbed
Returning capsules that test heat shields at hypersonic speed
In service ![]()
W-Series capsule
Spacecraft that works in orbit then parachutes back to Earth
Known rounds
Milestones
- Sep 2026 Varda reported six completed launch-and-reentry missions and more than a dozen launches scheduled through 2028. Company statement1
- Feb 2024 Varda's first capsule, W-1, landed at the Utah Test and Training Range after about eight months in orbit, carrying ritonavir crystals grown in microgravity. Company statement3
Sources
Updated Oct 21, 2026 · How we source facts · Suggest a correction