Contract Details
NASA announced on Tuesday that it has awarded Blue Origin a contract to develop the Mars Telecommunications Network. The agreement is a firm-fixed-price deal with a maximum value of roughly $700 million.
The purpose of the contract is to deliver a high-performance telecommunications orbiter that will operate around Mars. The orbiter is intended to supply reliable data transfer and navigation services for both existing and upcoming missions to the planet.
The spacecraft will use X-band and Ka-band frequencies while orbiting Mars, aiming to achieve data rates of several megabits per second.
- Enhanced bandwidth for high-resolution imagery and video
- Improved navigation accuracy for landers and rovers
- Added redundancy compared to direct Earth links
Work will cover the space vehicle platform as well as the ground stations that will communicate with the orbiter.
NASA states that the system is meant to establish a lasting space-based communications infrastructure capable of supporting future crewed missions.