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Ground infrastructure is important for space missions. Intuitive Machines is operating under a NASA contract for Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) [1].
by ooterness 3y ago
Ground infrastructure is important for space missions.
Intuitive Machines is operating under a NASA contract for Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) [1]. As such, they can negotiate access to NASA resources such as DSN and NEN for this mission. Intuitive Machines has also built several ground stations of their own [2]. These allow communications with the spacecraft as well as the range/velocity measurements needed for accurate navigation.
I'm the longer term, the Artemis program plans to build out LunaNet [3] for improved communications and GPS-like navigation services.
[1] https://www.nasa.gov/missions/artemis/clps/intuitive-machines/ https://www.nasa.gov/missions/artemis/clps/intuitive-machine...
[2] https://www.intuitivemachines.com/post/commercial-lunar-network-completed-ahead-of-im-1-moon-mission https://www.intuitivemachines.com/post/commercial-lunar-netw...
[3] https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/lunanet-empowering-artemis-with-communications-and-navigation-interoperability/ https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/lunanet-empowering-arte...
- dpflan 3y agoThanks for these great details. Is there a fee for using the NASA resources (I assume there is, I just don't know how this works)?
- ooterness 3y agoYes, there is a fee. The largest antennas (i.e., the absolutely gigantic 70 meter dishes) can be $5k per hour. Further discussion on StackOverflow [1] and the NASA MOCS guide [2]. [1] https://space.stackexchange.com/questions/21005/what-makes-time-on-the-dsn-so-expensive https://space.stackexchange.com/questions/21005/what-makes-t... [2] https://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/files/6_NASA_MOCS_2014_10_01_14.pdf https://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/files/6_NASA_MOCS_2014_10_01_...
- mlhpdx 3y agoThe name LunaNet made me think of GPS cubesats and ground transponders that would make precise positioning lunar equipment/missions without the latency of coupling to earth systems. It's not that, it seems. Anyone want to start a location-based service company? ;)
- ethbr1 3y agoYou are awesome! Thanks for all the links and info, to an open-ended question. The process of bootstrapping to Earth-space-parity is fascinating to me. One thing in the 1960s, when there was no GPS and terrestrial net assumption, but now you're going from everything we've built here to... if you don't bring it, you don't have it. The accretion of Mars support satellites has also been fascinating.
- Teever 3y agoIt's gonna be wild the first time SpaceX sends a Starship to the moon and/or mars to unload a load of starlink satellites into orbit.