LONDON, December 10, 2019 (OneWeb PR) – OneWeb, whose goal is to connect everyone everywhere, and OneWeb Satellites, a joint venture between Airbus and OneWeb, are coming together to advance the OneWeb Responsible Space program with a commitment to implement an advanced-technology grappling fixture, developed by Altius Space Machines, on OneWeb’s satellites.
(more…)
DENVER, Oct. 23, 2019( Voyager Space Holidings PR) — Voyager Space Holdings, Inc. (Voyager), the first space focused holding company in the world, today announced its intent to acquireAltius Space Machines, Inc., subject to customary closing conditions. Altius Space Machines will be the first company to be acquired by Voyager since the firm launched as the first vertically integrated NewSpace holding company. Voyager’s first in industry model is uniquely tailored to support the growth needs of commercial space companies by offering an alternative solution to traditional private capital models, replacing them with a longer-term approach as a provider of permanent capital.
(more…)
Altius Space Machines will continue to magnetic interface systems for use in satellite servicing and robotic landers under a pair of grants from NASA.
The space agency selected the Broomfiled, Colo.-based company for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II awards. Each award is worth up to $750,000 over a two-year period.
“Altius has developed an electropermanent-magnetically coupled electrical and/or fluid connection “MagTag™” interface that is robust and lightweight,” the company said in a proposal summary.
BREMEN, Germany, October 2, 2018 (NanoRacks PR) — In August 2018, NanoRacks was one of 13 companies selected by NASA to study the future of commercial human spaceflight in low-Earth orbit, including long-range opportunities for the International Space Station.
Today, NanoRacks is pleased to share the expansive industry team that the Company will be working with to complete this study and show the viability of commercial habitats (“Outposts”) in low-Earth orbit and the future of International Space Station commercial utilization.
(more…)
Altius Small Machines will develop systems that will allow for orbiting satellites to be upgraded and for planetary science missions to changes the tools they are using with the help of NASA funding.
The space agency selected the Colorado-based company for two awards under its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 1 program. Each contract is worth up to $125,000 over 13 months.
One project involves MagTags, which are modular interfaces that use “solid state switchable magnets and ferrous target materials to create a secure electrical or low-pressure fluid connection between modules and spacecraft with no moving parts,” according to the proposal summary.
We’ve all heard of dogtags for dogs and for soldiers. But, for space robots?
That’s what Jonathan Goff’s Altius Space Machines will begin developing with NASA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I funding. The contract is worth $125,000 over six months.
Altius’s dogtags are lightweight, passive robotic interfaces that could be attached to habitat structures and objects. Examples of structures include human-tended deep space habitats and commercial manufacturing facilities in Easrth orbit that wouldn’t be permanently staffed.
NASA has selected five propulsion projects for phase 2 funding under its Small Business Innovation Business (SBIR) program. The space agency will enter into negotiations with the five companies on contracts worth up to $750,000 over two years.
Three of the projects involve technology for the storage and transfer of cryogenic propellants in space. The other two projects would fund development of nuclear systems.
The selected projects include:
NASA has selected an in-space cryogenic fluids project by Jon Goff’s Altius Space Machines for negotiations on a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II. These contract is worth up to $750,000 over two years.
“While all cryogenic rocket stages have to have a propellant fill/drain coupling for loading propellant on the ground, existing designs are not capable of in-space refuelability,” Goff said in his proposal. “A dual-purpose coupler that could be used for both ground fill/drain and for in-space refueling would be extremely valuable.
As I was looking through NASA’s recent small business selection announcement for propulsion-related projects, I have found that the space agency has selected 29 Small Business Innovation Research and 8 Small Business Technology Transfer proposals for funding.
The proposals cover a wide range of areas, including in-space propulsion for CubeSats to technologies for new launch vehicles. Several proposals are also focused on in-space propellant depots.
A list of the selected projects with links to the proposals follows.
NASA has selected eight research projects focused on in-situ resource utilization for funding under its Small Business Innovation Research Phase I program.
The selected projects include:
Full descriptions of the projects are below.
NASA has selected at at least 28 proposals involving Cube-, nano- and micro-sats for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) Phase I awards.
The total includes 23 SBIR and five STTR projects. Companies are partnered with university researchers for the STTR awards.
NASA has selected Altius Space Machines of Broomfield, Colo., for three Small Business Innovation Research Phase I awards for advanced propulsion in-situ resource utilization technologies.
The three proposals selected for contract negotiations include:
NASA has selected Altius Space Machines for a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I award to develop a system that would allow International Space Station (ISS) crew members to off-load some of their menial tasks to robots.
Altius is developing low-inertia STEM arm (LISA) manipulators for use on SPHERES robots that are now being used aboard the space station. SPHERES are currently being used as testbeds for relative navigation and proximity operations, but NASA is interested in developing them to assist astronauts with various tasks.
By Jonathan Goff
CEO and President
Altius Space Machines
Part 2 of 2
In the last post, I introduced the two SBIR Select Phase 1 contracts that Altius has commenced work on. This blog post will focus on the other two Asteroid Redirect Mission contracts which mentioned there. These have been selected for contract negotiation, but aren’t active contracts yet, so I will try to be a little more high-level in this blog post.
WASHINGTON (NASA PR) — NASA has selected 18 proposals for studies under the Asteroid Redirect Mission Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). These six-month studies will mature system concepts and key technologies and assess the feasibility of potential commercial partnerships to support the agency’s Asteroid Redirect Mission, a key part of the agency’s stepping stone path to send humans to Mars.
The agency is working on two concepts for the mission. The first concept would fully capture a very small asteroid in free space and the other would retrieve a boulder off of a much larger asteroid. Both concepts would redirect an asteroid mass less than 10 meters in size to orbit the moon. Astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft launched on the Space Launch System (SLS) would rendezvous with the captured asteroid mass in lunar orbit and collect samples for return to Earth.
