The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) has announced the awarding of study contracts to three US-based startups—Cognitive Space, Impulse Space, and Starfish Space—focused on developing innovative launch capabilities. These contracts fall under the NRO’s Broad Agency Announcements (BAA) for its Agile Launch Innovation and Strategic Technology Advancement (BALISTA) program, which aims to explore advancements in areas such as in-space mobility and maneuver, on-orbit logistics and sustainability, mission acceleration, and artificial intelligence for ground operations.
Managed by the NRO’s Office of Space Launch (OSL), these contracts are described as „smaller in scope,” though specific financial details have not been disclosed due to the classified nature of the NRO’s budget. The initiative is designed to evaluate the potential contributions of emerging space launch providers to enhance operational capabilities.
„This BAA helps NRO advance emerging technologies across launch, on-orbit support, and command & control,” stated OSL Director Col. Eric J. Zarybnisky.
In its initial solicitation in March, the NRO outlined its interest in companies capable of offering various novel space launch services, such as docking technologies, orbital transfers, and AI for managing satellite constellations.
Cognitive Space, based in Houston, specializes in artificial intelligence for the autonomous management of space systems and satellite constellations.
Impulse Space, headquartered in Redondo Beach, California, focuses on in-space transportation services, facilitating movement from low Earth orbit to other orbits. On October 3, the company announced it secured a $34.5 million Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase III contract from the Space Force’s Space Safari program, in partnership with the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit. This contract aims to support upcoming experiments in the Tactically Responsive Space program called VICTUS SURGO and VICTUS SALO, utilizing the firm’s Mira vehicle, which will demonstrate how prepositioned capabilities can enhance responsiveness to on-orbit situations and improve space domain awareness.
Starfish Space, based in Tukwila, Washington, has also previously won a Space Force contract. Recently, on May 20, the Space Force awarded the company a $37 million Strategic Funding Increase (STRATFI) contract for the development, launch, and operation of one of its Otter vehicles. This contract involves a pioneering docking mission designed to provide two years of enhanced maneuverability for National Security Space assets, allowing targeted satellites to utilize the Otter as an attached propulsion system.
