Single-Stage-to-Orbit, with Livingston Holder (Radian Aerospace)

Pathfinder

The first single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) space plane? That's exactly what we're discussing on this week’s Pathfinder podcast. We interview Livingston Holder, cofounder and CTO of Radian Aerospace, which is developing a fully reusable space plane designed for horizontal launch and landing.

SSTO? Essentially, SSTO vehicles are designed to reach orbit using a single stage without discarding any hardware.

We explore Livingston’s background as a former USAF astronaut as well as the Seattle-based startup’s roadmap to build the world’s first SSTO space transport vehicle. In addition, we cover:

• Radian’s technology advantage
• Cultural and operational shifts in space missions
• Market positioning of SSTO
• Future applications and impact on space ops

And much more…

This episode is brought to you by the Italian Trade Agency (ITA).

• Chapters •

00:00 Intro & ITA Ad

02:12 Why space?

04:45 The astronaut program

06:06 Culture of NASA vs AF astronauts

07:29 Life after the program

09:24 Livingston's path to Radian

12:39 What is Radian building?

16:05 Unique take off

18:17 Who designed the sled?

19:36 Single-Stage-to-Orbit

23:26 Nozzle extensions

25:10 Why now?

29:12 How Livingston met his cofounder

33:19 Where is Radian today?

38:19 First flight test projection

39:23 Capabilities and market positioning

43:19 Hypersonic travel

47:32 Government and commercial traction

49:41 Direct competitors

52:15 How expensive is it to build Radian's spaceplanes?

54:43 What does Livingston do for fun?

• Show notes •

Radian's website — https://www.radianaerospace.com/

Radian's socials — https://twitter.com/RadianSpace

Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam

Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace

Pathfinder archive — Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@payloadspace

Pathfinder archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/episodes

• About us •

Pathfinder is brought to you by Payload, a modern space media brand built from the ground up for a new age of space exploration and commercialization. We deliver need-to-know news and insights daily to 19,000+ commercial, civil, and military space leaders. Payload is read by decision-makers at every leading new space company, along with c-suite leaders at all of the aerospace & defense primes. We’re also read on Capitol Hill, in the Pentagon, and at space agencies around the world.

Payload began as a weekly email sent to a few friends and coworkers. Today, we’re a team distributed across four time zones and two continents, publishing five media properties across multiple platforms:

1) Payload, our flagship daily newsletter, sends M-F @ 9am Eastern

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