# Starfish Space loses contact with 1st 'Otter' servicing spacecraft, ending NASA tech-demo mission

Source: [Latest from Space.com](https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/starfish-space-loses-contact-with-1st-otter-servicing-spacecraft-ending-nasa-tech-demo-mission) · 2026-11-09 · Space
Page: https://themorning.science/story/starfish-space-loses-contact-with-1st-otter-servicing-spacecraft-ending-nasa-tec-451624b9fcc197cb
Kind: launch · Impact: medium

## In brief

- Starfish Space announced on Tuesday, Nov. 3, that its first Otter servicing spacecraft, Otter 24C, suffered a glitch in low Earth orbit and is not recoverable.
- The loss ends a NASA technology-demonstration mission only about a month after the spacecraft reached orbit.
- The Seattle startup has lost contact with the satellite.

## Why it matters

The failure of an early commercial satellite-servicing vehicle shows how difficult in-orbit servicing remains, which bears on the feasibility of extending the lives of satellites and reducing space debris.

## Versions

- Otter 24C

## Timeline

- 2026-11-03: Starfish Space announces Otter 24C suffered a glitch in low Earth orbit and is not recoverable

## Coverage

- [Starfish Space loses contact with 1st 'Otter' servicing spacecraft, ending NASA tech-demo mission](https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/starfish-space-loses-contact-with-1st-otter-servicing-spacecraft-ending-nasa-tech-demo-mission) — Latest from Space.com, 2026-11-09

Tags: satellite servicing, starfish space, low earth orbit, nasa tech demo, spacecraft anomaly

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science