Pricing Transparency & Timelines

Space Box - 2024

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Missions occurring sooner incur a surcharge and are costed slightly higher than future missions due to additional planning considerations and operational costs
  • Your final price of €7,500.00 includes your Payload’s flight (0.5U, 250g), a Handling Fee of €100.00 (covering team costs associated with safety checks, payload integration, payload certification and return, etc.) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • You will be sent instructions to post your item to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in early 2024 in advance of our Mission
  • Your item will be safely integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your item will stay in orbit for a period of three hours
  • Your item will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your item completed its journey into space, box it and post it back to your nominated address, together with a Certificate of Flight, within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Document - 2024

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Missions occurring sooner incur a surcharge and are costed slightly higher than future missions due to additional planning considerations and operational costs
  • Your final price of €700.00 includes your Payload’s flight (A4, 10g), a Handling Fee of €50.00 (covering team costs associated with payload integration, payload certification and return, etc.) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • You will be sent instructions to post your document to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in early 2024 in advance of our Mission
  • Your document will be integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your document will stay in orbit for a period of three hours
  • Your document will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your document completed its journey into space and post it back to your nominated address, together with a Certificate of Flight, within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Postcard - 2024

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Missions occurring sooner incur a surcharge and are costed slightly higher than future missions due to additional planning considerations and operational costs
  • Your final price of €150.00 includes your Payload’s flight (A6, 4g) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • We have waived the Handling Fee associated with team costs for payload integration, certification and return, etc.
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • You will be sent instructions to post your postcard to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in early 2024 in advance of our Mission
  • Your postcard will be integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your postcard will stay in orbit for a period of three hours
  • Your postcard will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your postcard completed its journey into space, stamp it and post it back to your nominated address within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Postcard Bundle x 11 - 2024

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Missions occurring sooner incur a surcharge and are costed slightly higher than future missions due to additional planning considerations and operational costs
  • Your final price of €1,500.00 includes your Payload’s flight (A6 x 11, 44g), a Handling Fee of €50.00 (covering team costs associated with payload integration, postcard certification/stamping and return, etc.) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • We have waived the cost of the 11th postcard
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • You will be sent instructions to post your postcards to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in early 2024 in advance of our Mission
  • Your postcards will be integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your postcards will stay in orbit for a period of three hours
  • Your postcards will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your postcards completed its journey into space, stamp them and post them back to your nominated address within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Box (Reservation Fee Only) - 2026

Pricing: 

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Payloads such as this one which are booked in advance enjoy a discounted Early Bird price compared to our Standard Pricing
  • IMPORTANT: This product price of €1,000.00 is a reservation fee only, with the total service priced at €6,000.00 (including VAT). This total price shall include your Payload’s flight (0.5U, 250g), a Handling Fee of €100.00 (covering team costs associated with safety checks, payload integration, payload certification and return, etc.) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%. Please note that the balance of €5,000.00 will be payable in 2025. 

Pricing Breakdown: 

  • Reservation Fee: €1,000.00 (inc. VAT) > due upon booking, non-refundable
  • Balance: €5,000.00 (inc. VAT) > due in 2025, required to secure flight
  • Total: €6,000.00
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight

Timeline:

  • After booking, we will send you an email with questions about your item to ensure its suitability to fly (ensuring that it does not violate any restrictions listed in Section 2.2 of our Terms of Service) 
  • Your Mission Patch will be posted to you in early 2023
  • In early 2026, you will be sent instructions to post your item to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in advance of our Mission
  • Your item will be checked and integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your item will stay in orbit for a period between several weeks to several months (precise duration to be confirmed in 2023)
  • Your item will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your item completed its journey into space and post it back to your nominated address, together with a Certificate of Flight, within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Document - 2026

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Payloads such as this one which are booked in advance enjoy a discounted Early Bird price compared to our Standard Pricing
  • Your final price of €550.00 includes your Payload’s flight (A4, 10g), a Handling Fee of €50.00 (covering team costs associated with payload integration, payload certification and return, etc.) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • In early 2026, you will be sent instructions to post your document to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in advance of our Mission
  • Your document will be checked and integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your document will stay in orbit for a period between several weeks to several months (precise duration to be confirmed in 2023)
  • Your document will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your document completed its journey into space, stamp it (if you wish) and post it back to your nominated address, together with a Certificate of Flight, within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Postcard - 2026

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Payloads such as this one which are booked in advance enjoy a discounted Early Bird price compared to our Standard Pricing
  • Your final price of €125.00 includes your Payload’s flight (A6, 4g) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • We have waived the Handling Fee associated with team costs for payload integration, certification and return, etc.
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • In early 2026, you will be sent instructions to post your postcard to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in advance of our Mission
  • Your postcard will be checked and integrated into our Nyx Capsule for its journey into space
  • Your postcard will stay in orbit for a period between several weeks to several months (precise duration to be confirmed in 2023)
  • Your postcard will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your postcard completed its journey into space, stamp it and post it back to your nominated address within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Space Postcard Bundle x 11 - 2026

Pricing:

  • In line with our mission to democratize access to space, this product is intended to give everybody access to space and as such, your payload is priced at cost price for The Exploration Company
  • Payloads such as this one which are booked in advance enjoy a discounted Early Bird price compared to our Standard Pricing
  • Your final price of €1,250.00 includes your Payload’s flight (11 x A6, 44g), a Handling Fee of €50.00 (covering team costs associated with payload integration, postcard certification/stamping and return, etc.) and taxes charged at the German VAT rate of 19%
  • Shipping is charged additionally at checkout according to your region and will cover the return journey of your payload from our facilities to you after flight 

Timeline:

  • In early 2026, you will be sent instructions to post your postcards to our facility in Munich, Germany (please note that postage to our facility will be at your own cost) in advance of our Mission
  • Your postcards will be checked and integrated into our Nyx Capsule for their journey into space
  • Your postcards will stay in orbit for a period between several weeks to several months (precise duration to be confirmed in 2023)
  • Your postcards will return to Earth and be safely retrieved upon splashdown
  • We will certify that your postcards completed their journey into space, stamp them and post them back to your nominated address within approximately one month of splashdown
  • This return postage cost will be pre-paid by you and will be calculated at checkout

Mission Patches - 2024 & 2026

Mission Patches will be available for dispatch in early 2023

Flight & Product Information

What items are suitable/not suitable to fly in the Space Box?

Before confirming your booking, The Exploration Company team will ask you to share some information about the item you would like to fly.

In accordance with our Terms of Service, your payload must be assessed as safe to fly, cannot pose any safety risk, and cannot violate any of the following restricted items:  

  • Items requiring access to electricity or communications technologies.  
  • Items requiring specific temperature control.  
  • Fragile and easily breakable items.  
  • Living matter, including biomaterials, animals and any materials that would be subject to an ethical flying clearance. 
  • Flammable or explosive goods, including aerosol containers, spray paint, petrol and any other flammable liquid, fireworks, toy caps, firearms, flares, gunpowder, smoke cartridges and similar items. 
  • Dangerous, radioactive or toxic chemicals or gases. 
  • Illegal or unethical goods, as deemed according to local, national or international laws and as per the discretion of The Exploration Company’s team, partners or third parties. 
  • Anything else deemed to be a restricted item as per the discretion of The Exploration Company’s team, partners or third parties. 

Spaceflight is risky - will my item be safe? Can I get insurance?

There is a high level of risk associated with Orbital Flight, and our Missions in 2024 and 2026 will be our Demo Mission and Maiden Voyage respectively - meaning that we will be testing many of our core technologies. While The Exploration Company will make every effort to ensure the safety and security of the Customer’s Payload, there is a chance of loss or damage to the Payload. You as the Customer must accept this risk fully and without reservation.  

We are working to secure an insurance partner to enable you to easily insure your item for an additional fee. If this is interesting to you, please reach out to us at fly@exploration.space and we can keep you updated.

You are also welcome to procure your own insurance policy.

If you fail to procure insurance for your Payload, The Exploration Company accepts no liability for damage caused to your item.

My flight is some time away, can I update my return address for my package?

Yes, of course! We will be in contact with you prior to flight to confirm all of your details.

Please note that you will already account for and pay your return shipping cost at the Online Store checkout. If your updated shipping location is outside of your originally purchased area, you may be asked to pay an additional fee to us to cover this additional shipping cost.

Can I send a customizable payload/item outside of the offered dimensions into space?

We would be very happy to understand your needs and see whether we can accommodate a customized payload for you! Please reach out to us at fly@exploration.space to discuss.

If I'm sending a postcard, can I send my own artwork or does The Exploration Company have a postcard template?

It's totally up to you! Send us your own postcard or postcard-sized artwork, or download The Exploration Company's postcard template here: professionally print it (we've included some helpful instructions there for you), fill it in as you wish, and send it to us to send to space for you!