Nanoracks, Voyager Space, and Lockheed Martin Awarded NASA Contract to Build First-of-its-Kind Commercial Space Station
PR93452
DENVER, Dec. 3, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --
-- Starlab to anchor NASA's Commercial Low-Earth Orbit Destinations project as
the space economy continues to grow
Nanoracks, in collaboration with Voyager Space and Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT],
has been awarded a $160 million contract by NASA to design its Starlab (
https://nanoracks.com/starlab/ ) commercial space station as part of the
agency's Commercial Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Development program. Starlab will
enable NASA's initiative to stimulate the commercial space economy and provide
science and crew capabilities prior to the retirement of the International
Space Station (ISS).
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"While today marks a major milestone for Nanoracks and our Starlab team, the
impact goes far beyond this award," said Dr. Amela Wilson, CEO at Nanoracks.
"To receive this support from NASA validates over a decade of Nanoracks' hard
work forging commercial access to space, bringing over 1300 commercial payloads
from 30 nations to the ISS. This opportunity opens far-reaching possibilities
for critical research and commercial industrial activity in LEO. We are
honored to be selected as one of three awardees to work with NASA, and we
cannot wait to bring our existing global commercial customer base to Starlab."
The initial $160 million award to Nanoracks is made via a funded Space Act
Agreement through 2025. This initial NASA-provided funding will be supplemented
with customer pre-buy opportunities and public-private partnerships. Fully
owned by Nanoracks, Starlab is planned to reach initial operating capability in
2027, which ensures continuous human presence in LEO by U.S. entities. NASA
will have the opportunity to purchase crew and payload services on Starlab
through separate services contracts with Nanoracks.
Nanoracks has unparalleled commercial experience on the ISS. Joined by Voyager
Space's sophisticated investment strategy and expertise in operational
integration and Lockheed Martin's engineering knowledge and strategic vision,
the Starlab team presented a formidable program for the future of LEO
commercialization.
The basic elements of the Starlab space station include a large inflatable
habitat, designed and built by Lockheed Martin, a metallic docking node, a
power and propulsion element, a large robotic arm for servicing cargo and
payloads, and the George Washington Carver (GWC) Science Park. The GWC Science
Park is a state-of-the-art laboratory system which will host a comprehensive
research, science, and manufacturing capability. Starlab will have the capacity
to continuously host up to four astronauts to conduct critical science and
research.
"Starlab is the confluence of Lockheed Martin's rich space expertise and
history, Nanoracks' innovation, and Voyager's financial savvy. This team is
equipped to aid NASA on its mission to expand access to LEO and to enable a
transformative commercial space economy," said Lisa Callahan, Vice President
and General Manager, Commercial Civil Space at Lockheed Martin.
Nanoracks will prime Starlab's development leveraging over a decade of
experience as the pathfinder and global leader in commercial ISS utilization.
Voyager Space, the majority shareholder in Nanoracks, will lead strategy and
capital investment, and Lockheed Martin, a leader in developing and operating
complex space technology, will serve as the technical integrator of the new
advanced space station.
"Starlab's impact on space commercialization cannot be understated," said Dylan
Taylor, Chairman and CEO at Voyager Space. "Today we are witnessing a major
economic shift, where space businesses are tangible, well capitalized, and
commercially sustainable. It takes a planet to explore the universe, and we
invite the global community to be part of Starlab's success."
About Nanoracks
Nanoracks, a Voyager Space Company, is the world's leading commercial space
services provider. Nanoracks owns and operates private hardware on the
International Space Station and has launched over 1,300 research experiments,
deployed over 300 small satellites, and installed the Bishop Airlock. Today,
Nanoracks leverages over a decade of experience to develop new commercial space
systems in direct response to customer needs. These space systems include
converting commercial launch vehicle upper stages into functional secondary
platforms, building new habitable space stations, supplying payload and crew
airlock systems and services infrastructure, and more. Follow @Nanoracks on
Twitter to learn more.
About Voyager Space
Voyager Space is a global leader in space exploration. Voyager's long-term
mission is to create a vertically integrated, publicly traded NewSpace company
capable of delivering any space mission humans can conceive. The firm's
first-in-industry model is uniquely tailored to support the growth needs of
commercial space companies by replacing traditional private capital models with
a longer-term approach that provides permanent capital. To learn more about
Voyager Space, please visit: https://voyagerspace.com/ and follow @VoyagerSH (
) on Twitter.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT (
)) is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately
114,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design,
development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology
systems, products, and services. Please follow @LMNews (
) on Twitter for the latest announcements and news across the corporation.
Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements." All statements, other
than statements of historical fact, including those with respect to Voyager
Space Inc.'s (the "Company's") mission statement and growth strategy, are
"forward-looking statements." Although the Company's management believes that
such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee that such
expectations are, or will be, correct. These forward-looking statements involve
many risks and uncertainties, which could cause the Company's future results to
differ materially from those anticipated. Potential risks and uncertainties
include, among others, general economic conditions and conditions affecting the
industries in which the Company operates; the uncertainty of regulatory
requirements and approvals; and the ability to obtain necessary financing on
acceptable terms or at all. Readers should not place any undue reliance on
forward-looking statements since they involve these known and unknown
uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company's
control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results,
levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement
reflects the Company's current views with respect to future events and is
subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to
operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. The Company
assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking
statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ
materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if
new information becomes available in the future.
SOURCE Voyager Space; Nanoracks; Lockheed Martin
CONTACT: Media Contact: D'Mani Harrison-Porter, dharrison-porter@nanoracks.com;
Media Contact: Abby Dickes, abby.dickes@voyagerspace.com; Media Contact: Gary
Napier, gary.p.napier@lmco.com
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