NASA has awarded eight U.S. firms a total of $4M to investigate concepts that will aid existing and future space transmission systems. The goal of their five-month research period is to gain data that will assist near-Earth missions that are scheduled to begin in the mid-2020s.
The agency said Thursday that it plans to develop space communications technology at a more rapid pace by coordinating with industry partners.
The awardees are:
- ATLAS Space Operations
- Boeing
- Eutelsat America
- General Dynamics
- Intelsat
- Maxar
- Northrop Grumman
- SpaceX
In addition to the scientific benefits, the agency also sees the commercial benefits of this public-private partnership. NASA acknowledges that the increased development of space communication technology will provide manufacturers with a wider market, possibly lowering the financial costs the agency incurs if such services have a wider customer base.
