{"id":17809,"date":"2020-01-31T17:25:22","date_gmt":"2020-01-31T09:25:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/nasa-funds-in-space-manufacturing-demo-that-will-test-tethers-unlimited-technology\/"},"modified":"2020-01-31T17:25:22","modified_gmt":"2020-01-31T09:25:22","slug":"nasa-funds-in-space-manufacturing-demo-that-will-test-tethers-unlimited-technology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/nasa-funds-in-space-manufacturing-demo-that-will-test-tethers-unlimited-technology\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA funds in-space manufacturing demo that will test Tethers Unlimited technology"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_545570\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-545570\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-545570\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-antenna-630x354.jpeg\" alt=\"SPIDER robot at work\" width=\"630\" height=\"354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-antenna-630x354.jpeg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-antenna-1260x709.jpeg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-antenna-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-antenna-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-antenna.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-545570\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">An artist\u2019s conception shows Maxar Technologies\u2019 SPIDER robot assembling a communications antenna for the Restore-L spacecraft. (Maxar Technologies Illustration)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>NASA has awarded a $142 million contract to Maxar Technologies for a demonstration of in-space construction technologies, including the robotic assembly of a communications antenna and the production of a structural beam.<\/p>\n<p>The beam-manufacturing device, known as MakerSat, is being provided by Tethers Unlimited, a space technology company headquartered in Bothell, Wash.<\/p>\n<p>Maxar, Tethers Unlimited and other partners \u2014 including the West Virginia Robotic Technology Center and NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center \u2014 will have their hardware integrated onto NASA\u2019s Restore-L spacecraft, which Maxar is getting ready for launch in the 2020s.<\/p>\n<p>Restore-L\u2019s main mission is to show how satellites can be serviced and refueled robotically in low Earth orbit, with the Landsat 7 Earth-observing satellite chosen as the potential test target. After that demonstration, Maxar\u2019s Space Infrastructure Dexterous Robot, or SPIDER, will take on the assembly task.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: none; overflow: hidden;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FMaxarTechnologies%2Fvideos%2F640272266801351%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Using its 16-foot-long robotic arm, SPIDER will put together seven structural elements to form a functional 9-foot-wide communications antenna. The procedure was demonstrated successfully during a ground demonstration in 2017, when the program was called Dragonfly.<\/p>\n<p>The space-ready SPIDER will be built by Maxar\u2019s team in Pasadena, Calif. The same team has delivered six robotic arms for NASA missions to Mars, including the arms for the Mars InSight lander and the Mars 2020 rover.<\/p>\n<p>After assembly, the antenna will demonstrate Ka-band radio communication with a ground station. Then it\u2019ll be MakerSat\u2019s turn. Tethers Unlimited pioneered MakerSat\u2019s technology with $875,000 in financial support from NASA, in the form of two Small Business Innovation Research grants.<\/p>\n<p>During the Restore-L mission, SPIDER will put the MakerSat device into position to fabricate the lightweight carbon composite beam and attach it to the spacecraft. The beam\u2019s shape and strength will be checked to determine if space-built structures are different from structures manufactured on Earth.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_545572\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-545572\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-545572\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-makersat2-630x381.jpg\" alt=\"MakerSat\" width=\"630\" height=\"381\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-makersat2-630x381.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-makersat2-1260x762.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-makersat2-768x465.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-makersat2-1536x929.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/200131-makersat2.jpg 1656w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-545572\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">In an artist\u2019s conception, the SPIDER robotic arm moves Tethers Unlimited\u2019s MakerSat device and a freshly manufactured construction beam to its intended position on the Restore-L experimental satellite. (Maxar Technologies Illustration)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>If SPIDER and MakerSat work as envisioned, that could open up a whole new frontier for in-space manufacturing. NASA and commercial space ventures could manufacture bulky or lengthy structural elements in space rather than having to send them up pre-made. Assembly robots could piece together components for spacecraft that might be too big to fit inside their launch vehicle in finished form.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are continuing America\u2019s global leadership in space technology by proving we can assemble spacecraft with larger and more powerful components, after launch,\u201d Jim Reuter, associate administrator of NASA\u2019s Space Technology Mission Directorate, said today in a news release. \u201cThis technology demonstration will open up a new world of in-space robotic capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The possibilities include assembling space telescopes in orbit, or building out structures intended for use on trips to the moon or Mars.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn-space assembly and manufacturing will allow for greater mission flexibility, adaptability and resilience, which will be key to NASA\u2019s Moon to Mars exploration approach,\u201d said Brent Robertson, project manager of Restore-L at NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An artist\u2019s conception shows Maxar Technologies\u2019 SPIDER robot assembling a communications antenna for the Restore-L spacecraft. (Maxar Technologies Illustration) NASA has awarded a $142 million contract to Maxar Technologies for a demonstration of in-space construction technologies, including the robotic assembly of a communications antenna and the production of a structural beam. The beam-manufacturing device, known [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4783,4875,4640,190,3306,4876,4793],"class_list":["post-17809","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-makersat","tag-manufacturing","tag-maxar-technologies","tag-nasa","tag-restore-l","tag-spider-robot","tag-tethers-unlimited"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17809"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17809"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17809\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}