Dr. David Miller Discusses Collaborations With Commercial Space Sector
PITTSBURGH – Astrobotic Technology Inc. welcomed Pittsburgh native Dr. David Miller, NASA’s Chief Technologist, during his multi-day visit to Pittsburgh. Dr. Miller got a first-hand look at the technologies for Astrobotic’s first commercial lunar mission and developments related to the company’s current NASA contracts, including its participation in NASA’s Lunar Cargo Transportation and Landing by Soft Touchdown (Lunar CATALYST) program.
Dr. Miller was also briefed on other technologies developed at Astrobotic, including the imaging and precision landing/navigation system flight tested in 2014 with support from NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program and emerging technologies related to high performance computing for space.
Astrobotic emphasized the value of leveraging the expertise of NASA personnel to promote and grow the commercial space sector. “This visit by Dr. Miller was a great opportunity to showcase Astrobotic’s technologies and highlight the value of public-private partnership under Lunar CATALYST. Transportation to the Moon is fast becoming the domain of commercial space,” said John Thornton, CEO of Astrobotic. “NASA pioneered an extremely effective model for public-private partnership in the development of commercial resupply of the International Space Station. During our meeting, the SpaceX Dragon was docked at the ISS as part of its sixth resupply mission. We look forward to the day when commercial lunar transport is equally routine.”
While on site, Dr. Miller had an opportunity to view the Griffin lander and rovers that will be used on Astrobotic’s future lunar missions.
In recent weeks, Astrobotic was awarded four new NASA contracts, including three under the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program for developing sensing and navigation technologies for resource exploration on and under the surface of the Moon, Mars, and other planetary bodies. Astrobotic was also awarded another Flight Opportunities Program contract that will test Astrobotic’s RADAR-based final descent navigation system.
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About Astrobotic:
Astrobotic Technology Inc. is a lunar logistics company that delivers payloads to the Moon for companies, governments, universities, non-profits and individuals. Astrobotic’s spacecraft accommodates multiple customers on a single flight, offering flexibility at an industry- defining low price. Astrobotic is a NASA contractor, and is also an official partner with NASA on the Lunar CATALYST program. With its partner, Carnegie Mellon University, Astrobotic is pursuing the $30M Google Lunar XPRIZE. Astrobotic was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA.
For more information, visit https://www.astrobotic.com