RN
Richard Nederlander
Spargo Space
Founder & CEO
https://directory.startupluxembourg.com/people/rnederlander
@SpargoSpace
https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-nederlander
Description
Richard Nederlander is the founder and CEO of Spargo Space, a venture-backed startup developing autonomous spacecraft for in-space logistics and refueling. Under his leadership, Spargo Space has secured investment from the 1517 Fund and joined NYU’s Endless Frontiers Accelerator and the U.S. Space Force’s SDA TAP Lab. The company is also a member of the University of Central Florida’s Business Incubation Program and the Blackstone LaunchPad network.
Richard earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University in 2023, where his research focused on advanced microelectronics, space environments, and system resilience. He also holds a B.A. in Astrophysics from Columbia University. His technical background includes expertise in spacecraft systems, space radiation effects, and autonomous guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C).
Richard has worked as a Senior Space Environments Engineer at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, supporting the Deep Space Logistics program. His role involved working groups on radiation environments, system failure investigations, and root-cause analyses for spacecraft operations beyond low Earth orbit. He also worked as a Radiation Effects Engineer at Blue Origin, supporting qualification of New Glenn, MK1, and other designs.
Richard’s writings on spacepower and infrastructure have been published by the Space Force Association, where he has argued that cislunar space will quickly consolidate into spheres of influence driven by infrastructure dominance. His vision for Spargo Space is to build the logistics backbone that will enable humanity’s permanent presence beyond Earth.
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