LOCKHEED MARTIN and NORTHROP GRUMMAN are raising their bets on satellite servicing technology. Both firms announced they're making investments in the commercial space venture Orbit Fab that is developing “gas stations in space."
Orbit Fab’s first product is a fueling port to allow satellites to be refueled in orbit. The company’s planned architecture includes a system of tankers and fuel tenders in low Earth orbit, geostationary orbit and cislunar space.
Paul Pelley, of Lockheed Martin Space, said the ability to refuel a satellite on orbit is a “critical component for our customers’ missions because it allows them greater maneuverability and can extend the life of a mission.”
The investment in Orbit Fab is another sign of Lockheed's growing interest in satellite servicing. It announced in August it will launch a demonstration called Lockheed Martin In-space Upgrade Satellite System, designed to show how cubesats could be deployed to upgrade satellites.
Lockheed recently introduced a docking adapter — called Augmentation System Port Interface — to be used in the LM 2100 satellite bus that the company supplies to the Defense Department for the Global Positioning System program. The adapter would make it easier to update sensors or retrofit components after launch.
Northrop Grumman, meanwhile, has two Mission Extension Vehicles in orbit providing station-keeping services for two Intelsat satellites that were running low on fuel.
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