GoKawiilBlue Origin secures up to $700M NASA contract for Mars communications orbiter
NASA has selected Blue Origin to build the Mars Telecommunications Network, a deal potentially worth $700 million. The orbiter is due to be operational by December 31, 2028, relaying science data, imagery, navigation details, and mission-critical communications for spacecraft near and on Mars.
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Reliable Mars-to-Earth communications infrastructure is a prerequisite for NASA's longer-term goal of sending humans to Mars, building on lessons from its Artemis lunar missions. The award also deepens Blue Origin's role as a NASA contractor, coming after it won a lunar lander contract earlier this year, even as its New Glenn rocket program faces delays following a launchpad explosion.
- NASA awarded Blue Origin up to $700 million to build a Mars telecommunications orbiter.
- The orbiter must be operational by the end of 2028 to support science, navigation, and mission communications.
- Blue Origin continues to expand its NASA partnership despite setbacks in its New Glenn rocket program.
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Published there as: “Blue Origin wins NASA contract for telecommunications on Mars”
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