Oxford, UK-based technology company, First Light Fusion (FLF) have had a kick-off meeting to mark their entry into the Prepare for Space programme.
FLF have a background in internal fusion research including a growing portfolio of commercial services focused on testing, modelling, and experimentation under extreme conditions. Their experimental platforms were originally created for fusion science, but have since found applications across the defence and advanced engineering sectors.
As orbital congestion, longer mission durations, deep space exploration and a greater reliance on sensitive electronics and lightweight structures have drawn attention to the need for a validated understanding of impact, radiation-rich, plasma, and transient energetic environments.
FLF have the potential to address this need through a combination of large-scale physical testing and validated predictive simulation to support faster design iterations, reduced qualification risks, improved model fidelity, and a greater confidence in spacecraft design decisions and certification readiness.
A kick-off meeting was held with FLF and supporting project partners, AstroAgency, at the end of February 2026 giving us the opportunity to provide an introduction to the space sector, begin the process of identifying applications suited to FLF’s capabilities, and introduce funding guidance.
A group of work packages have been identified to help progress FLF’s integrated suite of experimental, diagnostic, and computational capabilities to reproduce, measure, and model extreme conditions relevant to space environments.