Gravitics, a US startup developing space station modules for the commercial market, just won a US Space Force contract. SpaceWERX, the innovation arm of the Space Force, awarded the company a $1.7M Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Direct-to-Phase II contract. As part of this, Gravitics will use its space station modules to develop an orbital platform for rapid and flexible response.
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The contract
Gravitics will carry out the contract in cooperation with the Space Safari Program Office. The latter is a USSF Space Systems Command organization tasked with responding to urgent needs. In particular, the office aims to improve Tactically Responsive Space (TacRS) capabilities, or the ability to respond to threats in space. Space Safari deals with vehicle acquisition, sensor integration, ground architecture modification, mission design, and initial orbital operations.
The contract awarded to Gravitics entails using the company’s space station architecture to develop an orbital platform that will give the USSF rapid and flexible response options. This will be just one of the many capabilities of the company’s modules. Neither Gravitix nor SpaceWERX elaborated further on what exactly these capabilities entail.
“We are looking at all options to meet the mission on tactically relevant timelines. The Gravitics space station module offers an unconventional and potentially game-changing solution for TacRS. As we look into the future, the innovative use of commercial technologies will be an important aspect to solving some of our toughest challenges.”
— Lt Col Jason Altenhofen, Space Safari’s Director of Operations
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The company
Gravitics Inc. was founded in 2021 and has since worked on designing and manufacturing large-scale space structures. Their main venture is StarMax, a 7.6 m diameter module offering 400 m³ of pressurized volume. Such a module would provide almost half of the pressurized volume of the entire ISS. Hardware for the module has already successfully endured some pressure tests. 4 m and 6 m versions are also in the works.
Gravitics will not work alone on this contract. They will be assisted by Rocket Lab USA, True Anomaly, Space Exploration Engineering, and Eta Space. Rocket Lab and True Anomaly are already working on the Victus Haze mission for the USSF. Space Exploration Engineering specializes in mission design, while Eta Space works on cryogenic fluid management. Meanwhile, commercial space station modules manufacturing will continue to be Gravitics’ core mission.
