Maxar partners with Blue Origin and Draper
to design, build and demonstrate operations of a spacecraft that
could support returning humans to the surface of the Moon by
2024
Maxar Technologies (NYSE:MAXR) (TSX:MAXR), a global technology
innovator powering the new space economy, today announced it has
been selected by NASA to build and perform a spaceflight
demonstration of the lunar Gateway’s power and propulsion element
spacecraft. Blue Origin and Draper will join the Maxar-led team in
designing, building and operating the spacecraft through the
demonstration period. The power and propulsion element is a key
component to NASA’s overall plans to land American astronauts on
the surface of the Moon by 2024, and will be the first segment of
the Gateway tested in space.
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Maxar has been selected to build and fly
the first element of NASA's lunar Gateway (Photo: Business
Wire)
Maxar previously conducted a four-month study to develop
affordable and innovative electric-propulsion-enabled concepts for
the power and propulsion element spacecraft. Building on the
successful completion of the study, Maxar has been selected to
proceed with development. The power and propulsion element will
provide power, maneuvering, attitude control, communications
systems and initial docking capabilities. Maxar is currently
targeting launch of the element on a commercial rocket by late
2022.
“Maxar Space Solutions is proud to play a critical role in
enabling American astronauts to build a sustainable presence on the
Moon. Our power and propulsion element partnership enables NASA to
leverage Maxar’s commercial capabilities to cost-effectively
expedite plans for sustainable exploration of the Moon, while also
providing significant benefits to American industry,” said Dan
Jablonsky, Maxar CEO. “As a valuable part of Maxar, our Space
Solutions group serves the global commercial and U.S. government
satellite market.”
This firm-fixed price award includes an
indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity portion and carries a
maximum total value of $375 million. Following a successful
demonstration period of up to one-year, NASA could acquire the
spacecraft for use as the first element of the Gateway.
“The Gateway will give us a strategic presence on and around the
Moon. It will drive our activity with commercial and international
partners and help us explore the entire lunar surface and its
resources,” said William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator,
Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA
Headquarters in Washington. “We will ultimately translate that
experience toward human missions to Mars.”
Maxar’s power and propulsion element design is based on our
powerful 1300-class platform, which provides flexibility for a
broad range of applications and technological advances. There
are 91 spacecraft based on the 1300 currently on orbit for
commercial operators – more than any other model of communications
satellite. Maxar’s 1300-class spacecraft platform is also the basis
for NASA’s Psyche mission, which will explore an all-metal asteroid
beyond Mars in 2026, and NASA’s Restore-L spacecraft, which will
refuel the Landsat-7 satellite in 2022.
High-power solar electric propulsion will be used to efficiently
maneuver the power and propulsion element into its orbit and
subsequently move the Gateway between lunar orbits over its
lifetime to maximize NASA’s science and exploration operations.
Maxar’s extensive experience with solar electric propulsion
includes 36 spacecraft on-orbit today and more than 100,000 hours
of firing time.
A key element of Maxar’s power and propulsion element design is
the Roll Out Solar Array (ROSA). ROSA is a groundbreaking, compact,
modular and scalable solar array system that rolls up for launch
instead of folding like an accordion. ROSA is a highly
mass-efficient, qualified technology that can be scaled up to
200kW and above for high-power operations. ROSA was successfully
tested on the International Space Station in 2017 and is available
for use on all of Maxar’s spacecraft platforms.
The operations of DigitalGlobe, SSL (Space Systems Loral) and
Radiant Solutions were unified under the Maxar brand in February;
MDA continues to operate as an independent business unit within the
Maxar organization.
About Maxar Technologies
As a global leader of advanced space technology solutions, Maxar
is at the nexus of the new space economy, developing and sustaining
the infrastructure and delivering the information, services, and
systems that unlock the promise of space for commercial and
government markets. The operations of DigitalGlobe, SSL (Space
Systems Loral) and Radiant Solutions were unified under the Maxar
brand in February; MDA continues to operate as an independent
business unit within the Maxar organization. As a trusted partner
with 5,900 employees in over 30 global locations, Maxar provides
vertically integrated capabilities and expertise including
satellites, Earth imagery, robotics, geospatial data and analytics
to help customers anticipate and address their most complex
mission-critical challenges with confidence. Every day, billions of
people rely on Maxar to communicate, share information and data,
and deliver insights that Build a Better World. Maxar trades on the
New York Stock Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange as MAXR. For
more information, visit www.maxar.com.
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Media ContactOmar MahmoudMaxar Media
Relations1-650-852-5388omar.mahmoud@maxar.comInvestor Relations
ContactJason GurskyMaxar VP Investor
Relations1-303-684-2207jason.gursky@maxar.com
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