Amid preparations for its spaceplane's maiden flight and an initial public offering as soon as next year, Sierra Space is expanding its satellite offerings. "We've actually been waiting for six months, so it's like, this [name], we really thought about it," Tom Vice, Sierra Space chief executive said in an interview for CNBC's "Manifest Space" podcast. Valued at $5.3 billion as of September, Sierra Space was spun out of defense contractor Sierra Nevada Corporation three years ago. Sierra Space touts a diverse space and defense tech portfolio spanning space transportation, space habitation, propulsion and satellites. It's perhaps best known for its NASA-contracted, reusable spaceplane Dream Chaser which will run cargo resupply missions to the International Space Station and eventually carry humans to and from orbit.

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Persons: We've, Tom Vice, Eren, Jeff Bezos Organizations: Space, Sierra Space, Sierra Nevada Corporation, Fatih, NASA, International Space Station, Pentagon, U.S, FAA