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Civil

All articles tagged with #civil

civil16 days ago•16 min saved

Gateway tech pivots to the Moon: Northrop Grumman and CSA repurpose HALO and Canadarm3

Northrop Grumman will reuse HALO hardware from NASA’s Gateway for three Lunar Infrastructure Demo landers to test surface power, data and communications for a future Moon base, while Canada’s Canadarm3 robotics work is being repurposed for lunar applications and potential use on commercial stations; NASA funding for the payloads is being arranged under CLPS with Phase One targets through 2029, though many specifics remain to be finalized.

via SpaceNews|

#canadarm3 #civil #gateway

civil1 month ago•15 min saved

NASA projects face delays as civil workforce shrinks

A GAO report released July 23 finds NASA's civil-service headcount has fallen about 22% over the past year, affecting 25 of 36 major projects and potentially delaying work; Orion lost roughly 10% of civil servants and SLS about 20%, with Goddard hardest hit at 34% and several centers facing staffing gaps that could become staffing risks, though cost and schedule have not dramatically worsened yet. The agency reported $478.2 million in net overruns concentrated in SLS Block 1B and Orion, and noted possible bigger impacts in FY2027 funding; NASA is pursuing contractor-to-civil-service conversions and a new NASA Force program to shore up critical skills like aerospace, mechanical, electrical engineering, IT, and cybersecurity.

via SpaceNews|

#civil #gao #nasa

civil3 months ago•13 min saved

China’s 2027 crewed circumlunar mission sparks renewed space race

NASA chief says China is expected to perform a crewed circumlunar flight around the Moon in 2027, a development echoed by Jared Isaacman who warned the next Moon mission will be taikonauts. The comments underscore a perceived space-race dynamic between the U.S. and China, while Isaacman has pushed to accelerate Artemis—now reframed as a 2027 low-Earth-orbit test (Artemis 3) followed by a 2028 lunar landing (Artemis 4)—and Congress has signaled support with increased exploration funding. All crewed lunar missions to date have been NASA missions.

via SpaceNews|

#artemis #china #civil

civil3 months ago•14 min saved

NASA opens final bid round for Mars telecom relay orbiter

NASA has released the final RFP for the Mars Telecommunications Network (MTN), inviting proposals by June 15 and aiming to award a contract by Oct. 1. The MTN would be a Mars communications relay orbiter funded with about $700 million from the budget reconciliation act and targeted for readiness by 2028, with a payload allowance around 20 kg (55 x 55 x 45 cm) and 60 watts of power. Eligibility is limited to companies that participated in 2024–25 Mars sample return commercial studies; eight firms did (Blue Origin, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Rocket Lab, SpaceX, Quantum Space, Whittinghill Aerospace), though NASA has not disclosed which included telecom orbiter concepts. Blue Origin and SpaceX have been vocal proponents of a Mars telecom orbiter.

via SpaceNews|

#blue-origin #civil #mars-orbiter

civil4 months ago•14 min saved

NASA allocates science payload on Mars MTN relay mission

NASA is reserving space for a small science payload on the Mars Telecommunications Network (MTN) relay spacecraft—up to 20 kilograms in a 55 by 55 by 45 cm volume, up to 60 watts, and capable of 200–1,000 megabits of data per day. The payload will be provided by NASA and could be cubesats. This follows NASA's plan to include science on MTN; a draft RFP was released April 2 with an updated industry-day briefing noting the payload requirement. The final RFP is due May 1, with proposals about a month later. MTN aims for a late-2028 launch and full Mars operation by 2030, funded by a $700 million bill; several companies, including Blue Origin and Rocket Lab, are pursuing the contract, though instruments and selection details remain undecided.

via SpaceNews|

#civil #cubesat #mars

civil4 months ago•15 min saved

Falcon Heavy chosen to launch ESA's Rosalind Franklin Mars rover amid NASA budget fight

NASA has tapped SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy to launch Europe’s Rosalind Franklin Mars rover under the ROSA program, with NASA supplying braking engines for the descent stage and RHUs, plus rover electronics and a mass spectrometer. The late-2028 mission is backed by a $175.7 million launch contract, even as NASA’s proposed 2027 budget seeks to cancel ROSA and faces broader pressure over planetary-science funding amid strong congressional opposition.

via SpaceNews|

#civil #esa #nasa