SAM #T2P-ARC-00125

NASA Technology Transfer Opportunity: Method for Transferring a Spacecraft from GTO to Lunar Orbit

This notice announces a NASA technology transfer opportunity for a novel method to transfer spacecraft from Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) to lunar orbit, developed by Ames Research Center. - NASA Marshall Space Flight Center is seeking companies interested in licensing this technology for commercialization, manufacturing, and marketing. - License rights may be exclusive or nonexclusive and can be tailored to specific fields of use. - No funding or procurement of goods/services is involved; this is strictly a licensing opportunity for intellectual property. - The technology enables secondary spacecraft to share rides to GTO and then transfer to lunar orbit, offering cost savings, flexible launch timing, and shorter transfer durations. - No specific products, part numbers, or quantities are requested. - Interested parties should contact NASA for licensing details.

Description

NASA’s Technology Transfer Program solicits inquiries from companies interested in obtaining license rights to commercialize, manufacture and market the following technology. License rights may be issued on an exclusive or nonexclusive basis and may include specific fields of use. NASA provides no funding in conjunction with these potential licenses. 

THE TECHNOLOGY:  

This novel innovation from Ames Research Center allows spacecraft to share rides with larger spacecraft which are headed to Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO). The secondary spacecraft is dropped off Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) at any time during the day or year and will subsequently enter lunar orbit, with no constraint on the lunar orbit inclination. The secondary spacecraft can be relatively small, riding as a secondary payload with a larger primary spacecraft. The secondary spacecraft is intended to be controllable (i.e., maneuverable). 

The invention presents a trajectory design whereby a spacecraft can be launched as a secondary payload into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) and through a series of maneuvers to reach lunar orbit. The trajectory analysis begins by identifying acceptable ranges of lunar orbit altitude and inclination values. The unique features of this method includes the use of either a leading or trailing edge lunar flyby to achieve an orbit inclination in the lunar orbit plane from a GTO launched at any time of day. This technique is applicable to secondary spacecraft that share a ride to space resulting in a substantially reduced cost, and with no control of the launch conditions. Major advantages of this design include the relatively short (maximum) lunar transfer duration (<3 months, less than half of that required for a Sun-Earth weak-stability boundary transfer), simplicity and consistency of design (again compared to a Sun-Earth weak stability boundary transfer). 

To express interest in this opportunity, please submit a license application through NASA’s Automated Technology Licensing Application System (ATLAS) by visiting https://technology.nasa.gov/patent/TOP2-272

If you have any questions, please e-mail NASA’s Technology Transfer Program at Agency-Patent-Licensing@mail.nasa.gov with the title of this Technology Transfer Opportunity as listed in this SAM.gov notice and your preferred contact information. For more information about licensing other NASA-developed technologies, please visit the NASA Technology Transfer Portal at https://technology.nasa.gov/ 

These responses are provided to members of NASA’s Technology Transfer Program for the purpose of promoting public awareness of NASA-developed technology products, and conducting preliminary market research to determine public interest in and potential for future licensing opportunities. No follow-on procurement is expected to result from responses to this Notice.  

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