Schmidt-backed Relativity Space targets privately funded Mars orbiter for 2028 with NASA Aeolus instruments

Relativity Space, led by Eric Schmidt since 2025, said it will privately build and fly a Mars orbiter in 2028 carrying NASA’s Aeolus atmospheric instruments and serving as a communications relay, funded by an unnamed philanthropic backer. The spacecraft would ride Relativity’s Terran R rocket, its first orbital launcher, which has yet to reach orbit (Terran 1 flew once and failed). NASA Ames will design and operate the payload, while Relativity would own the orbiter and manage the relay. If Terran R reaches orbit on schedule, a 2028 Mars transfer window could be feasible, but any slip would push the mission back. The plan tests a bold private‑public science push and raises governance questions if a private relay becomes the Mars data link.