Leyden Space — Propellant-less Electromagnetic Propulsion
PRE-SEED · GOLDEN, COLORADO

Satellites shouldn't retire because they ran out of fuel.

Leyden Space is developing novel electromagnetic propulsion
We manuever satellites using ambient plasma and a more efficient thruster architecture.

The Problem

Every maneuverable satellite is still fuel constrained

Propellant is finite. Once it's gone, an otherwise healthy spacecraft is retired, along with everything it cost to build and launch.

5–7 yrs
Average LEO satellite lifespan
Limited by propellant, not by the hardware's actual working life.
$10–50M
Cost of a mission-ending failure
The price of losing a satellite to orbit decay or an unavoidable collision.
Thousands
of satellites in graveyard orbits
Retired early, once maneuvering propellant runs out.
The Technology

Project LAUREN

No onboard propellant

Draws reaction mass directly from ambient plasma — nothing to carry, refuel, or run out of.

Electrodeless architecture

No exposed electrodes to erode under sustained operation — a core driver of thruster lifespan.

Extended operational life

Removing the propellant constraint lets a satellite operate for as long as its other hardware allows.

Diverse mission profiles

One architecture spans station-keeping, collision avoidance, and orbital repositioning.

PROVISIONAL: Electrodeless Alfvén Wave Thruster PROVISIONAL: Acceleration System Geometry PROVISIONAL: Plasma Biasing Methodology
LAUREN — SPEC SUMMARY REV 2026.1
PropellantNone (ambient plasma)
Thrust range10–20 mN
Technology ReadinessTRL 3–4
Target orbit250–500 km LEO
Target lifespan30 yrs (est.)
Performance figures reflect current lab-scale modeling and are under active validation. Full methodology available on request.
Team & Advisors

Built at one of the highest-flying colleges in the world.

Leyden Space began at the Colorado School of Mines Rocket Research Lab, and is built by a small, technically deep team.

Ashle Jantzen

Ashle Jantzen

Founder & CEO
Will Swegles

William Swegles

Lead Engineer
William Armstrong

William Armstrong

Mechanical Engineering
Partners
CSM

Colorado School of Mines

EMC

Electromancer Space Corporation

Hexa F

HexaF

Get in touch

Let's talk propulsion.

We're raising a pre-seed round to fund Phase 1 validation. Reach out for the deck, a technical walkthrough, or to discuss partnership.