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By NASA
Credit: NASA NASA’s Small Spacecraft Systems Virtual Institute (S3VI) is pleased to announce the official release of the highly anticipated 2024 State-of-the-Art Small Spacecraft Technology report. This significant accomplishment was made possible by the contributions of numerous dedicated people across NASA who graciously supported the preparation of the document as authors and reviewers. We also want to extend our gratitude to all the companies, universities, and organizations that provided content for this report.
The 2024 report can be found online at https://www.nasa.gov/smallsat-institute/sst-soa. The report is also available in PDF format as a single document containing all report content as well as individual chapters available on their respective chapter webpages. This 2024 edition reflects updates in several chapters to include: the Formation Flying and Rendezvous and Proximity Operations section within the “Guidance, Navigation, and Control” chapter; the Additive Manufacturing section within the “Structures, Materials, and Mechanisms” chapter; the Free Space Optical Communications section within the “Communications” chapter; and the Hosted Orbital Services section within the “Complete Spacecraft Platforms” chapter.
As in previous editions, the report contains a general overview of current state-of-the-art SmallSat technologies and their development status as discussed in open literature. The report is not intended to be an exhaustive representation of all technologies currently available to the small spacecraft community, nor does the inclusion of technologies in the report serve as an endorsement by NASA. Sources of publicly available date commonly used as sources in the development of the report include manufacturer datasheets, press releases, conference papers, journal papers, public filings with government agencies, and news articles. Readers are highly encouraged to reach out to companies for further information regarding the performance and maturity of described technologies of interest. During the report’s development, companies were encouraged to release test information and flight data when possible so it may be appropriately captured. It should be noted that technology maturity designations may vary with change to payload, mission requirements, reliability considerations, and the associated test/flight environment in which performance was demonstrated.
Suggestions or corrections to the 2024 report toward a subsequent edition, should be submitted to the NASA Small Spacecraft Systems Virtual Institute Agency-SmallSat-Institute@mail.nasa.gov for consideration prior to the publication of the future edition. When submitting suggestions or corrections, please cite appropriate publicly accessible references. Private correspondence is not considered an adequate reference. Efforts are underway for the 2025 report and organizations are invited to submit technologies for consideration for inclusion by August 1, 2025.
NASA’s Small Spacecraft Technology program within the Space Technology Mission Directorate funds the Small Spacecraft Systems Virtual Institute.
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By NASA
Credit: NASA The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP), an advisory committee that reports to NASA and Congress, issued its 2024 annual report Thursday examining the agency’s safety performance, accomplishments, and challenges during the past year.
The report highlights 2024 activities and observations on NASA’s work, including:
strategic vision and agency governance Moon to Mars management future of U.S. presence in low Earth orbit health and medical risks in human space exploration “Over the past year, NASA has continued to make meaningful progress toward meeting the intent of the broad-ranging recommendations the panel has made over the last several years,” said retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Susan J. Helms, chair of ASAP. “We believe that the agency’s careful attention to vision, strategy, governance, and program management is vital to the safe execution of NASA’s complex and critical national mission.”
This year’s report reflects the panel’s continued focus on NASA’s strategies for risk management and safety culture in an environment of growing space commercialization. Specifically, the panel cites its 2021 recommendations for NASA on preparing for future challenges in a changing landscape, including the need to evaluate NASA’s approach to safety and technical risk and to evolve its role, responsibilities, and relationships with private sector and international partners.
Overall, the panel finds NASA is continuing to make progress with respect to the agency’s strategic vision, approach to governance, and integrated program management. The NASA 2040 new agencywide initiative is working to operationalize the agency’s vision and strategic objectives across headquarters and centers. With the establishment of NASA’s Moon to Mars Program Office in 2023, it finds NASA has implemented safety and risk management as a key focus for NASA’s Artemis campaign.
The 2024 report provides details on the concrete actions the agency should take to fulfill its previous recommendations and spotlights its recommendations for the agency moving ahead. It addresses safety assessments for Moon to Mars and current International Space Station operations, as well as risk-related issues surrounding NASA’s planned transition to commercial low Earth orbit destinations.
It covers relevant areas of human health and medicine in space and the impact of budget constraints and uncertainty on safety.
The annual report is based on the panel’s 2024 fact-finding and quarterly public meetings; direct observations of NASA operations and decision-making; discussions with NASA management, employees, and contractors; and the panel members’ experiences.
Congress established the panel in 1968 to provide advice and make recommendations to the NASA administrator on safety matters after the 1967 Apollo 1 fire claimed the lives of three American astronauts.
To learn more about the ASAP, and view annual reports, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/asap
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Jennifer Dooren / Elizabeth Shaw
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
jennifer.m.dooren@nasa.gov / elizabeth.a.shaw@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Feb 06, 2025 EditorJessica TaveauLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel View the full article
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By NASA
In 2023, NASA Langley’s workforce brought imagination to reality with innovative technological development and a continued commitment to tackling some of the tough challenges that both NASA and the nation face.
NASA At NASA, we aspire to know more, dig deeper, climb higher and along the way we are asking, ‘What if?’,” said NASA Langley Center Director Clayton P. Turner in an introductory message to Langley’s 2023 Annual Report. “Our inquisitive nature propels us on our mission to reach for new heights and reveal the unknown for the benefit of humankind.”
All year, the Langley workforce pondered and planned for a future alongside self-flying drones, aircraft with reduced emissions, air travel that benefits from greater fuel efficiency and space exploration assisted by inflatable heat shields that could give us the ability to carry greater payloads than ever before.
“We invite you to explore all that NASA’s Langley Research Center has to offer — our amazing people, unique capabilities, and legacy of success,” Turner said in his introduction.
Use this link to explore the 2023 Annual Report for NASA’s Langley Research Center.
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By NASA
NASA At NASA’s Langley Research Center, we are proud of our world-renowned role in innovating and improving the way we fly, explore, and understand our universe.” said NASA Langley leadership in an introductory message to Langley’s 2024 Annual Report. “The passion, dedication, and expertise of our workforce is bringing solutions to the nation’s toughest challenges in Aeronautics, Space Exploration, and Earth Science research.”
Featured achievements include work on NASA’s X-59 supersonic experimental aircraft, the largest air quality campaign to ever collaborate with countries across Asia and an autonomous robotic manipulation system that will one day provide NASA with a lunar moving crew.
Use this link to explore the 2024 Annual Report for NASA’s Langley Research Center.
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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
The SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov approaches the International Space Station as it orbited 261 miles above Ontario, Canada, near James Bay. NASA published a new report Thursday highlighting 17 agency mechanisms that have directly and indirectly supported the development and growth of the U.S. commercial space sector for the benefit of humanity.
The report, titled Enabling America on the Space Frontier: The Evolution of NASA’s Commercial Space Development Toolkit, is available on the agency’s website.
“This is the most extensive and comprehensive historical analysis produced by NASA on how it has contributed to commercial space development over the decades,” said Alex MacDonald, NASA chief economist. “These efforts have given NASA regular access to space with companies, such as SpaceX and Rocket Lab, modernizing our communications infrastructure, and even led to the first private lunar lander thanks to Intuitive Machines. With commercial space growth accelerating, this report can help agency leaders and stakeholders assess the numerous mechanisms that the agency uses to support this growth, both now and in the future.”
Throughout its history, NASA has supported the development of the commercial space sector, not only leading the way in areas such as satellite communications, launch, and remote sensing, but also developing new contract and operational models to encourage commercial participation and growth. In the last three decades, NASA has seen the results of these efforts with commercial partners able to contribute more to missions across NASA domains, and increasingly innovative agency-led efforts to engage, nurture, and integrate these capabilities. These capabilities support the agency’s mission needs, and have seen a dramatic rise in importance, according to the report.
NASA has nurtured technology, companies, people, and ideas in the commercial space sector, contributing to the U.S. and global economies, across four distinct periods in the agency’s history:
1915–1960: NASA’s predecessor, the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA), and NASA’s pre-Apollo years. 1961–1980: Apollo era. 1981–2010: Space shuttle era. 2011–present: Post-shuttle commercial era. Each of these time periods are defined by dominant technologies, programs, or economic trends further detailed in the report.
Though some of these mechanisms are relatively recent, others have been used throughout the history of NASA and NACA, leading to some overlap. The 17 mechanisms are as follows:
Contracts and Partnership Agreements Research and Technology Development (R&TD) Dissemination of Research and Scientific Data Education and Workforce Development Workforce External Engagement and Mobility Technology Transfer Technical Support Enabling Infrastructure Launch Direct In-Space Support Standards and Regulatory Framework Support Public Engagement Industry Engagement Venture Capital Engagement Market Stimulation Funding Economic Analysis and Due Diligence Capabilities Narrative Encouragement NASA supports commercial space development in everything from spaceflight to supply chains. Small satellite capabilities have inspired a new generation of space start-ups, while new, smaller rockets, as well as new programs are just starting. Examples include CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services), commercial low Earth orbit destinations, human landing systems, commercial development of NASA spacesuits, and lunar terrain vehicles. The report also details many indirect ways the agency has contributed to the vibrance of commercial space, from economic analyses to student engagement.
The agency’s use of commercial capabilities has progressed from being the exception to the default method for many of its missions. The current post-shuttle era of NASA-supported commercial space development has seen a level of technical development comparable to the Apollo era’s Space Race. Deploying the 17 commercial space development mechanisms in the future are part of NASA’s mission to continue encouraging commercial space activities.
To learn more about NASA’s missions, please visit:
https//:www.nasa.gov
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Last Updated Dec 19, 2024 EditorBill Keeter Related Terms
Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy (OTPS) View the full article
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