Momentus Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTS), a U.S. commercial space company offering satellite transportation and in-space infrastructure services, announced that it has been awarded a task order by NASA for the formulation phase of the agency's Fly Foundational Robots (FFR) Resupply mission, a mission designed to advance the technologies needed for future in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (ISAM).
NASA selected Momentus as one of two participants to develop the mission's concept of operations, technical interfaces, and system design for the first FFR resupply mission. Following this formulation phase, NASA intends to select one of the participants to move into the implementation phase and fly the mission.
NASA’s FFR technology demonstration missions focus on accelerating the development of space robotics through frequent, lower-cost flight demonstrations that deliver incremental capability improvements.
“This task order provides an opportunity for Momentus to demonstrate its capabilities in orbital transportation, spacecraft operations, and rendezvous mission design,” said John Rood, Chief Executive Officer at Momentus. “The mission concepts being evaluated under the Fly Foundational Robots program align closely with our vision of enabling a sustainable in-space economy through transportation, servicing, and infrastructure solutions. We are excited to support NASA in developing capabilities that could become foundational to future commercial space operations.”
Under the concept being evaluated by Momentus, a dedicated resupply spacecraft would transport a pallet containing multiple robotically enabled payloads developed through NASA's TechLeap Prize Robotically Manipulated Payload Challenge. After launch, the spacecraft would perform orbital maneuvers, and execute rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (RPOD) with the vehicle hosting the FFR robotic arm.
Once docked, the robotic arm aboard FFR’s spacecraft would transfer payloads from the resupply vehicle to the host platform for continued robotic operations and demonstrations. The mission architecture could also include transferring orbital hardware between spacecraft and demonstrating the reuse of robotic infrastructure already deployed on orbit.
Momentus’ upcoming fully booked Vigoride-8 mission is scheduled to fly in 2027 carrying two NASA payloads. Momentus has also begun work on its Vigoride-9 spacecraft.