Sidus Space Inc (NASDAQ:SIDU) climbed after beginning payload activation on its LizzieSat-1 (LS-1) satellite following a successful commissioning phase.
Having been launched on the SpaceX Falcon 9 in early March, Sidus said on Tuesday that LS-1 was now “operating effectively as a fully functional satellite”.
Each critical spacecraft component was activated individually to ensure satisfactory performance after two months in low-Earth orbit, the company added.
Activating the satellite’s payloads will now see Sidus carry out customer requests, with primary objectives expected to be met over the coming weeks.
“We are eager to move on to the next phase of early satellite operations with LS-1 now that we have successfully completed the commissioning phase,” CEO Carol Craig said.
“I am beyond proud of the entire Sidus team who has worked tirelessly to systematically move through the critical initial stage of operations for the first satellite in our constellation and look forward to launching additional satellites later this year.”
Shares were up 2.6% at US$3.20 on the news.