FEDERALfederal award

NASA Contract for TESS Space Mission Operations

Original title: National Aeronautics and Space Administration → NORTHROP GRUMMAN SYSTEMS CORPORATION ($102.08M)

space exploration government contracting aerospace science and technology

Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.

The Frame

What this does

This contract allocates $102.08 million in federal funds to Northrop Grumman for the ongoing technical development and operational management of the TESS mission, which is used to identify exoplanets.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

The company is contractually obligated to perform specific engineering, testing, and operational tasks for the TESS mission.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

The agency is providing $102.08 million in funding and oversight for the TESS mission development.

What changed

No recent stage movement in the current record.

What's next

Next step not available in the current record.

Summary

NASA has awarded a $102.08 million contract to Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation to support the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission. The contract covers the design, development, testing, and operation of the spacecraft and its mission control center.

Key Facts

NASA awarded a $102.08 million contract to Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation.
The contract covers work for Phases B through F of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission.
Northrop Grumman is responsible for the design, analysis, validation, development, fabrication, assembly, integration, and testing of the TESS spacecraft.
The contractor must develop, test, operate, and sustain the Mission Operations Center (MOC).
Northrop Grumman is responsible for the spacecraft and camera accommodation structure, including the sunshade.
The TESS instrument (camera structure, data handling unit, and harness) is provided by the government as Government Furnished Equipment (GFE).
The contractor is responsible for integration activities between the government-provided instrument and the spacecraft.
The contractor must provide all necessary personnel, materials, facilities, and resources to complete the mission tasks.

Why It Matters

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of this contract?

The contract funds the development, testing, and operation of the TESS spacecraft and its mission control center for NASA.

Who is responsible for building the TESS camera?

The TESS instrument, including the camera structure, is provided by the government as Government Furnished Equipment, though the contractor is responsible for integrating it into the spacecraft.

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift90% confidence

Government-Contractor Division of Labor

The contract explicitly separates the development of the spacecraft (contractor responsibility) from the development of the scientific instrument (government responsibility), highlighting a specific procurement strategy for complex space hardware.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation