Episode #17 - Canada’s Rockets, Satellites, and the Atlantic Spaceport. Rahul Goel, CEO and Founder, NordSpace

Rahul Goel, CEO and founder of NordSpace, joins me to discuss how his company is building a fully Canadian space ecosystem — from 3D-printed rocket engines and launch vehicles to satellites, AI-driven payloads, and Canada's first commercial spaceport in Newfoundland. They’re working to reshape and fill gaps in every segment of Canada’s space sector, from investment and infrastructure to technology and policy.

NordSpace is redefining how Canada accesses orbit by developing its own rockets (Tundra and Titan), satellite systems (Terra Nova), and the Atlantic Spaceport Complex to support end-to-end space missions. Rahul explains what it takes to launch from Canadian soil, how his team grew from two engineers in a basement to a 25-person national venture, and why space must be treated as critical infrastructure, not a distant frontier.

The conversation covers Canada’s regulatory hurdles, the company’s lessons from its first launch campaign, the push for technological sovereignty, and the balance between ambition and pragmatism in a country often seen as risk-averse. Rahul also shares his personal journey to leading one of Canada’s most ambitious aerospace ventures — and why he believes the next decade will belong to nations that build, not buy, their access to space.

This is a must-listen for anyone following Canadian aerospace, satellite innovation, or the business of space access.

Some key points:

• NordSpace is building Canada’s first end-to-end space ecosystem — rockets, engines, satellites, and the Atlantic Spaceport Complex in Newfoundland.
• Space is critical infrastructure, not a frontier. If satellites failed, Canada would lose an estimated $1 billion per day in economic impact.
• Terra Nova, NordSpace’s AI-enabled satellite program, will detect wildfires and security threats in real time, proving that Canadian satellites can deliver on-orbit intelligence.
• Rahul Goel says Canada must move past the Avro Arrow mindset and take real risks again: “We can do hard things here.”
• Rahul’s goal: build the roads to orbit so others can build industries on top of them.
• “When we succeed,” Rahul says, “I want people to say we did it — Canada did it.”

Check out NordSpace at https://www.nordspace.com/

You can find Rahul on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/iorahul/

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Live long and prosper.