NASA is requesting information from domestic and international companies about Earth proximity relay communication and navigation capabilities that could replace the aging Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system in providing near-Earth communications for future space exploration missions.
The request for information was issued as part of the Communications Services Project, which aims to assess and determine the commercial satellite communications services and technologies that can support emerging agency science missions, NASA said Monday, noting that the TDRS is retiring and will only support existing missions.
According to Kevin Coggins, deputy associate administrator of NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation Program, embracing commercial offerings could help solve communication challenges for future missions and provide a greater ability to command spacecraft, resolve issues in-flight, and deliver more data and scientific discoveries collected across the solar system.
The space agency will accept RFI responses until July 11.
What Is TDRS?
The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of seven geosynchronous satellites that relay signals between orbiting spacecraft and ground control stations. It provides near-continuous information relay services to over 25 missions, including the Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station. Such missions will continue to rely on TDRS until the mid-2030s.
Each TDRS spacecraft’s retirement will be driven by individual health factors, as the seven active satellites are expected to decline at variable rates. The satellite system, which began operations in 1988, consists of three generations of satellites launched over 40 years. TDRS-13, the last in the third generation, was launched Aug. 18, 2017.
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