On 23 September 2021, at 13:33:45 UTC, the first payment in space with a corporate card took place.
Experience the first payment in space with a Mooncard corporate card.
With the first contactless payment transaction in the stratosphere, Mooncard and Visa are pushing back the boundaries to demonstrate to businesses that they can provide the highest level of service. This is a complementary cross-border collaboration with a shared vision on connecting businesses with their customers and helping to develop a more inclusive economy.
The time has come to show you the technological achievements we are capable of.
We guarantee you that we will be by your side to help you grow your business.
Altitude max : 37 074 m | Speed : 325 km/h | Flight time : 2h11 | GPS coordinates : 53.033379, -1.163714 | Minimum temperature : -64°C | Timestamp : 13h33 UTC
Technology used : contactless, made possible by a custom-made wi-fi bridge powerful enough to support the transaction.
Review all the steps of the project through pictures. From the custom manufacture of highly sophisticated technology tools sent into space, up to the launch.
You may also consult the press release.
How did the flight go ?
A comprehensive and complex organization
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Year End 2020 : Mooncard challenges itself to carry out a payment in space
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Selection of the partners: Visa, Loyaltek and Sent Into Space
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Technical considerations: creation of an articulated arm to perform the payment and a network for contactless payment
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First trials and technical preparation
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Meteorological tests
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Payment at 31 km from Earth
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Payment of a 45€ transaction to an independent Belgian hotelier
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Receipt of a security SMS from Mooncard, confirming the successful completion of the transaction
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Final verifications by our partner Sent Into Space to ensure that no trace have been made in space
The stages of the flight
0 m to 300 m
10.5 km to 10.8 km
22.2 km to 22.5 km
30.5 km to 31.1 km
The flight plan
Is it environmentally friendly?
In the case of this payment in space, helium was used to raise both the payment terminal and the card. Therefore, no harmful emissions were produced.
As for the equipment launched, it was designed and manufactured for sustainable use and reuse.
They are collected after each flight and the electronic components of the launcher are powered by rechargeable power sources.
All materials are either reusable, recyclable or renewable in the manufacture of the launching boats.
At the end of each flight, the balloons, which are non-toxic, burst into thin ribbons and are collected and disposed of safely.
The steps of the payment in the space
Discover the making of
Technical details
Wi-fi bridge : operating on 2.4GHz, this is a custom system that involves paired antennas, wi-fi modules and amplifiers to effectively expand the range of a mobile wi-fi network, which itself is connected to a 4G device.
Helium balloon: the diameter of the balloon on the ground is about 2m on the ground and 15m at 35km.
Payment card: printed by Nitecrest
Flight plan: the launch site was at Ashbourne, Derbyshire, and the coordinates of the landing site are 52.959450,-0.485530, near Sleaford, in Lincolnshire.
Articulated arm: aluminium arm made with a 3D printer to produce various components, mainly Ultimaker.
This is a servo controlled arm which triggers a pre-programmed set of moves at a pre-set altitude which we can then couple up with the data payment call-up at the same altitude. The altitude is monitored throughout the flight by a custom GPS module designed to operate at extreme altitude which also reports launch vehicle position directly on the ground through radio telemetry (434MHz).
The arm is controlled and powered by bespoke circuitry, the flight computer of which is based on Arduino architecture. The radius of gyration is approximarely 360mm with rotation angle of 180 degrees on each servo. Total height is 460mm when extended. The servos are MG996 metal gear servos and there are 6 of them although not all are used in the activation required.
Our partners
Our project would not have been possible without the help and the technical expertise of our partners Visa, Loyaltek and Sent Into Space.
Visa: Thanks to Visa payment network, you can use your Mooncard card to pay your purchases in most of offline and online merchants, on Earth and from space.
Loyaltek: the seamless technology of Loyaltek's payment terminal has been demonstrated in space. Thanks to their terminal, the transaction could actually be carried out.
Sent Into Space: if our partner is not at his first trip in space, it is actually the first time that he managed a payment in the stratosphere. It was an opportunity for him to accomplish a technical feat never attempted before.
Sent Into Space's core team:
- Dr Alex Baker, CTO
- Dr Chris Rose, Head of Projects
- Matt Bate, Project Manager
- Oli Turk, Lead Design Engineer
- Niall Dawson, Launch Engineer
- Harrison Denton, Software & Network Engineer
- Matt Lanning, Lead Creative
- Eva Yap, Video Editor
- Doug, Office Canine
With Mooncard, rise to new heights.
More time, more money, less stress. With Mooncard, you no longer have to waste time doing things that do not add value. With Mooncard and its partnership with Flying Blue, spend more time traveling.
In a nutshell...
Mooncard Corporate is a solution to manage your employees' expenses in real-time. You save time, your employees too. You save money by easily recovering all the VAT. For every expense, your employees earn Miles Flying Blue.
Need more information ?
Our team is available Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. to present the Mooncard solution to you and work with you to design a tailor-made quote corresponding to your business needs.