NASA taps Advanced Space to fly CAPSTONE 02 and validate lunar rendezvous with twin smallsats
NASA has selected Advanced Space to fly CAPSTONE 02, a pair of 400‑kg small satellites launching in 2027 to demonstrate rendezvous and proximity operations near the Moon in a cislunar environment, including autonomous navigation, communications demos, and radiation measurements, as a risk‑reduction step for Artemis missions. The mission, built by Terran Orbital, will test three‑body orbit operations and payload imaging for lunar testing, continuing the CAPSTONE program that began with a 2022 CubeSat mission to validate lunar Gateway‑style navigation and operations.