NASA is teaming up with 37 companies to develop the next generation of technologies that could make long-term exploration of the Moon and Mars possible.
NASA has chosen 41 proposals from 37 U.S. companies to help develop technologies needed for a sustained human presence on the Moon and eventual crewed missions to Mars.
The companies were selected through NASA’s 2025 Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity (ACO). Their projects focus on major challenges in space transportation, surface operations on other worlds, and the infrastructure required for long-term work on the Moon.
“We are empowering American industry to become active partners in NASA’s missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond,” said Greg Stover, director, Advanced Research and Technology Division in the agency’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “By tapping into commercial industry, NASA can rapidly develop key capabilities to support its most ambitious missions while fostering the nation’s robust space economy.”
How NASA Works With Private Companies
The ACO program creates partnerships between NASA and industry without providing direct funding to participating companies. Instead, businesses can use NASA facilities, software, hardware, and technical expertise to accelerate the development of their technologies.
This support can help companies prepare new systems for commercial use as well as future government missions.
NASA has supported more than 110 projects since the first ACO program began in 2015. The agency estimates that the resources provided through these agreements are worth about $30 million. Participating companies have contributed an additional $32 million.
Each agreement will have its own negotiated schedule, although projects are generally expected to run for 12 to 24 months.
Technologies for Future Space Missions
Companies were asked to address areas where cooperation between government and industry could speed up development. The targeted technologies include space transportation engines, guidance and navigation, landing systems, energy management, and systems for servicing, assembling, and manufacturing equipment in space.
The full list of selected proposals is available on NASA’s website. The projects cover a broad range of capabilities, including lunar power, orbital logistics, and protection from abrasive Moon dust.
Generating Power in Dark Lunar Regions
Lockheed Martin will continue developing a compact, modular energy system designed to provide reliable power in the Moon’s permanently shadowed regions.
Such a system could help astronauts, equipment, and other resources endure the long lunar night. The company also plans to advance wireless power transfer using fiber lasers, along with a heat rejection system designed to improve durability in space.
Extending the Life of Spacecraft
Kall Morris Inc. will develop Asteria, a system that allows additional payloads to be attached to spacecraft already in orbit.
Asteria is designed to connect with older, current, and future orbital assets using an adhesive that can be released in a controlled way without damaging the spacecraft. It also does not require attachment hardware to be installed in advance.
The technology could support improved maneuvering, object tracking, spacecraft protection, data collection, and longer satellite operating lives.
Protecting Equipment From Moon Dust
Moonprint Solutions, a small business, is proposing flexible covers that could shield important equipment from the Moon’s abrasive dust.
Because the covers can bend around complex shapes, they could protect many different types of hardware. Possible uses include rovers, robotic joints, hoses, and other moving components needed for extended operations on the Moon and Mars.
Expanding the Commercial Space Economy
NASA says the selected projects could have benefits beyond future exploration missions. The technologies may help expand existing commercial markets, create entirely new ones, reduce costs, increase competition, and introduce capabilities that are not currently available.
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2 Comments
I think that NASA’s motto should be, “Fire, Aim, Ready.” Until (if even possible) the problem of high radiation levels both on the trip to-and-from Mars, as well as astronauts living there is solved, the only people going there will be those with a death wish or terminal cancer and a short life expectancy. For Mars, the first priority should be addressing how to keep astronauts from having a significantly shortened life expectancy and avoiding a painful, premature death from radiation-caused cancer(s). It is irresponsible to avoid discussing the radiation problem while holding out the possibility of humans actually living there. Among other things, there needs to be frank discussions about whether the “Linear — No Threshold” radiation model is valid, or if the threshold model is valid. This controversy has repercussions beyond space travel outside the protection of the Earth’s magnetic field and there are honest but strong feelings on both sides, which will tend to encourage arguments based on feelings rather than facts.
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