Maxar Rebrands its Spacecraft Portfolio

The Maxar 300 spacecraft series is the company’s smallest and most modular bus, optimized for high rate and rapid production. Photo: Maxar

Maxar Technologies is rebranding its lineup of satellites to show the company’s broad manufacturing capabilities, Maxar announced April 17. The rebrand includes new names to commercialize two spacecraft buses. The new portfolio consists of the Maxar 300 series, Maxar 500 series, and the Maxar 1300 series. 

The Maxar 300 series is its smallest and most modular bus, optimized for high rate and rapid production. It is the same bus that Maxar is building for L3Harris to support its Space Development Agency (SDA) contract.  

The Maxar 500 series is the mid-size platform used for the WorldView Legion satellites, but can be tailored for multiple missions and orbits. 

And the 1300 series is already known as the 1300-Class platform. It is the well known Maxar Geostationary Orbit (GEO) platform, and the company said the technology can be applied beyond GEO. For example, the spacecraft is the baseline for NASA’s Gateway Power and Propulsion Element.

Maxar said this family of platforms complement each other and can be used collectively in the same solution in some cases. “Customers can come to us with a wide array of critical missions, and our spacecraft family offers the right platforms to fit their needs,” said Chris Johnson, senior vice president and general manager for Space at Maxar. “These products are rooted in Maxar’s deep legacy of manufacturing flexible, reliable spacecraft, and our investments ensure they are relevant now and well into the future.”

This rebranding comes as Maxar is in the midst of a deal to be acquired by private equity firm Advent International. Maxar recently announced the deal is expected to close in late April or early May.