Anasphere

What Anasphere does

Anasphere, Inc. is a privately held Montana-based aerospace instrumentation manufacturer founded in 2002 by Dr. John Bognar. The company designs and builds three core product lines: (1) cloud water content sensors (SLWC, LWC, and the second-generation Universal Water Content / UWC2 sensor) that use vibrating wire technology to distinguish supercooled liquid, above-freezing liquid, and ice phases in clouds; (2) tethered atmospheric profiling systems (SmartTether with up to 6 km telemetry and LiteTether with ~150 m range) for boundary-layer measurements; and (3) patented solid-state hydrogen gas generators scalable from under 100 to over 20,000 normal liters, used for meteorological balloon inflation and for NASA Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (HIAD) applications. The company pairs its hardware with mathematical equation documentation and example Python processing code, and integrates with third-party radiosondes via the NOAA-developed XDATA digital format.

Anasphere serves three primary customer segments: U.S. government agencies (notably NASA, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy through SBIR, ACO, and IDIQ awards since 2011), major aerospace manufacturers conducting aviation and atmospheric testing, and academic/research institutions performing atmospheric and cloud physics research. The company operates from the historic Logan school building in Logan/Manhattan, Montana, with six acres of open test space and a 44-foot closed-circuit icing wind tunnel supporting in-house sensor and gas generator validation.

The business model is predominantly direct B2B and government-facing hardware sales, supplemented by R&D-funded development under SBIR and other government awards. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market relies on the company website (with dedicated general, sales, and support email channels), peer-reviewed publications (e.g., Serke et al., 2014 in Atmospheric Research), and a NASA Spinoff (2017) feature. The company holds an R&D100 Award Finalist nomination (2015) for the SLWC sensor and has patented solid-state hydrogen gas generator technology. In January 2023 Anasphere suspended production of its current-generation tethersonde systems and announced plans to formalize gas generators for meteorological balloon inflation as a regular commercial product line.

Name

Anasphere

Legal name

Anasphere, Inc.

Website

https://anasphere.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Anasphere, Inc. is a Montana-based aerospace instrumentation manufacturer founded in 2002 that designs vibrating wire cloud water content sensors, tethered atmospheric profiling systems, and patented solid-state hydrogen gas generators for meteorological balloons and NASA HIAD applications, serving U.S. government agencies, aerospace manufacturers, and academic researchers worldwide via direct sales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aerospace Instrumentation

NAICS

Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing (336414), Industrial Gas Manufacturing (325120), Automatic Environmental Control Manufacturing for Residential, Commercial, and Appliance Use (334512)

SIC

Guided Missiles & Space Vehicles & Parts (3760), Search, Detection, Navagation, Guidance, Aeronautical Sys (3812)

akta.pro primary industry

Space Payloads & Instruments (Sensors, Comms, EO/IR) (IMABACAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Environmental Sensors (Temperature/Humidity/Gas/Air Quality) (HDAHALAD), Space Structures, Mechanisms & Thermal Control (IMABACAF)

Keywords

• Atmospheric sensors
• Hydrogen gas generators
• Tethersonde systems
• Cloud water content sensors
• Aerospace instrumentation

Headquarters

HQ city

Manhattan

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Atmospheric Sensors: Sale of specialized sensors including UWC2, SLWC, and LWC cloud water content sensors. These are hardware products sold to customers for integration with their radiosonde and balloon platforms.
2. Tethersonde Systems: Sale of SmartTether and LiteTether tethered profiling systems including flight modules, ground stations, and associated software. Hardware-based product sales for boundary-layer meteorological profiling.
3. Hydrogen Gas Generators: Sale of solid-state hydrogen gas generators for meteorological balloon inflation, HIAD inflation, and other specialized gas inflation applications. Scalable from small to large capacity units. Custom gas generator designs also offered.
4. NASA SBIR and Government Contracts: NASA SBIR Phase I and Phase II awards for development of improved solid-state hydrogen gas generators and other technology. NASA IDIQ award for hydrogen gas generators for HIAD inflation. Navy funding for scaleup of gas generators.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Anasphere manufactures atmospheric sensors, tethersonde systems, and solid-state hydrogen gas generators for aerospace, government, and research customers. The product portfolio includes vibrating wire cloud water content sensors (SLWC and UWC2), tethered boundary-layer profiling systems (SmartTether and LiteTether), and patented pyrotechnic hydrogen gas generators used for meteorological balloon inflation and NASA Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (HIAD) applications.

Product overview

Anasphere manufactures aerospace systems including atmospheric sensors and inflation gas generators. The product portfolio centers on three core areas: (1) Tethersonde systems - SmartTether and LiteTether - for boundary-layer profiling deployed on tethered blimps or kites; (2) Cloud sensors including the SLWC Sensor for supercooled liquid water, the Universal Water Content (UWC2) Sensor for measuring all water phases, and legacy LWC sensors; and (3) Solid-state hydrogen gas generators for meteorological balloon inflation and space applications (HIAD inflation). The company also provides supporting documentation, data processing software (Python programs), and technical papers for sensor equation derivations. Systems primarily target aerospace manufacturers, government agencies, and academia for aviation testing and atmospheric research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• UWC Sensor: Universal Water Content sensor for measuring all condensed phases of water in clouds: above-freezing liquid, supercooled liquid, and ice.
• SLWC Sensor
• SmartTether
• LiteTether

Products and services

• SmartTether Full-featured tethersonde system for boundary-layer profiling and near-surface meteorological measurements. Supports multiple flight modules on a tether of blimp or kite with up to 6 km telemetry range, measuring pressure, temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and wind direction. Designed for atmospheric researchers and government agencies.
• LiteTether Compact, lightweight, rugged tethersonde system for boundary-layer profiling. Operated via Android-based app on a handheld device or tablet with data logging, real-time display, and approximately 150 m telemetry range using a low-power radio. Designed for portable atmospheric profiling in field deployments.
• SLWC Sensor (Supercooled Liquid Water Content) Single-wire vibrating wire cloud sensor measuring supercooled liquid water content of clouds by detecting ice buildup via changes in vibration frequency. Pairs with any radiosonde accepting the XDATA digital data format. Also used qualitatively for rapid detection of icing conditions for UAV operations. Sold to atmospheric researchers and aerospace customers.
• UWC2 Sensor (Universal Water Content) Second-generation two-wire sensor measuring all condensed phases of water in clouds—above-freezing liquid, supercooled liquid, and ice. Uses a bare wire for supercooled liquid water content and a gel-coated wire for total water content. Pairs with any radiosonde accepting the XDATA digital data format. Available in UWC2, SLWC-only, and TWC-only variants. Sold to atmospheric researchers and aerospace customers.
• Hydrogen Gas Generators for Meteorological Balloons Patented solid-state hydrogen gas generators producing dry hydrogen gas rapidly and controllably for inflating meteorological balloons in remote areas or from unconventional platforms. All-solid-state construction ensures long-term storability under wide conditions. Scalable from less than 100 normal liters to over 20,000 normal liters; typical meteorological balloon generators housed in 5-gallon steel drums with capacities up to 3 cubic meters of hydrogen. Sold to government agencies and aerospace customers.
• Hydrogen Gas Generators for Space (HIAD Inflation) Patented solid-state hydrogen gas generators designed for inflating Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators (HIADs) in space applications. All-solid-state construction with long-term storability under wide conditions and scalability from less than 100 normal liters to over 20,000 normal liters. Sold to NASA and space program customers.
• Other Gas Generators Pyrotechnic gas generators extended beyond hydrogen to other gases, focusing on controlled and rapid generation of target gases. Custom gas generators and cores are available for other companies. Sold to industrial and research customers.
• AnaSonde Series Radiosondes Atmospheric radiosondes developed in 2006 for small airborne platforms, capable of measuring atmospheric conditions when deployed on balloons. Sold to atmospheric researchers and government agencies for high-altitude atmospheric measurement.

Quantifiable outcome

• Deployment altitudes of ~100,000 feet for zero-pressure balloon operations
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• NASAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2022Anasphere received a NASA IDIQ (Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity) award for hydrogen gas generators to inflate Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators (HIADs). NASA has also awarded Anasphere SBIR Phase I and Phase II awards for development of improved solid-state hydrogen gas generators and a NASA ACO award for environmental testing of hydrogen generators.
• NASAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2022Anasphere received a NASA SBIR Phase II award for the development of improved solid-state hydrogen gas generators. This follows prior NASA Phase I SBIR and ACO awards supporting the technology development.
• U.S. NavycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Navy funding in 2020 supported scaleup of Anasphere's gas generators. In 2022, a Navy 6000-liter balloon inflation was conducted, demonstrating the technology in a naval operational context.
• U.S. Air ForcecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011An Air Force project in 2011 initiated Anasphere's gas generator work. The project was for MALRD (Miniature Air-Launched Rawinsonde and Dropsonde) involving gas generation for a balloon-borne radiosonde launched from a flare cartridge on F-16 aircraft. This foundational project led to Anasphere's scalable hydrogen gas generator product line.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/anasphere-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Anasphere