NASA Tasks Space Industry Players to Provide Flight, Payload Integration Support

SpaceX, Rocket Lab USA and 13 other companies have secured five-year indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity base contracts worth a total of $45 million to provide NASA and other agencies with flight and payload integration services.

The other recipients are Aerostar International, Angstrom Designs, Astrobotic Technology, Astro Digital, Blue Origin Texas, Galactic Enterprises, Loft Orbital Federal, Momentus Space, Near Space Corp., Spire Global, Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, Varda Space Industries and World View Enterprises, NASA said Monday.

The selected companies’ efforts are expected to advance the development of space operations capabilities and procedures, including testing in high-altitude or reduced-gravity environments.

Testing platforms include suborbital rockets, orbital spacecraft and high-altitude balloons.

NASA said the contracts support its Flight Opportunities and Small Spacecraft Technology programs, which are managed by the Space Technology Mission Directorate.

In late 2023, a Blue Origin suborbital rocket carried into orbit 14 Flight Opportunities research payloads, including a Massachusetts Institute of Technology project to evaluate in-space manufacturing processes.