The latest funding will enable Diffraqtion to get flight heritage in orbit as officials plan to launch a hosted payload on an unnamed spacecraft.

This allocation marks a step toward orbital operations for the company, though the specific vehicle remains unannounced.

The news comes as the industry looks back at history, noting that the fourth Falcon 1 flight on September 28, 2008, successfully reached orbit carrying the Ratsat payload, becoming the first privately developed liquid-fueled rocket to do so.