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Maxar has delivered the OSAM-1 spacecraft to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. The On-orbit Servicing, Assembly and Manufacturing 1 (OSAM-1) mission will be the first to robotically refuel a satellite not designed for fueling or servicing. Maxar will also provide robotic arms that support on-orbit activities, including in-space assembly and manufacturing.

OSAM-1, shown here in Palo Alto before delivery, will eventually host three robotic arms made by Maxar’s robotics team.

Maxar delivered two major elements in September to Goddard, which is the integration site for OSAM-1:

  • The spacecraft bus – Built in Palo Alto, California, this is the most maneuverable satellite that Maxar has ever produced. A suite of thrusters gives OSAM-1 unique maneuver capability that offers six degrees of freedom, including the ability to execute “back away” maneuvers. The OSAM-1 spacecraft is based on the reliable Maxar 1300™ series platform. This is also the baseline for NASA’s Psyche mission launching in October and the Intelsat 40e satellite that hosts a NASA payload, TEMPO. There are more than 90 Maxar 1300 series spacecraft in orbit today.
  • SPIDER Pallet – Maxar is also building the Space Infrastructure Dexterous Robot, or SPIDER. The SPIDER pallet is the stowing location on the spacecraft for the robotic arm and the modular antenna components it will assemble in space. This deck also houses a robotic processor, cameras and a camera controller for the assembly mission.
Technicians place the transportation container cover on OSAM-1 shortly before it departed for Goddard Space Flight Center.
Technicians place the transportation container cover on OSAM-1 shortly before it departed for Goddard Space Flight Center.
The spacecraft arrives at its integration site.
The spacecraft arrives at its integration site. Photo credit: NASA/Mike Guinto.

Maxar will deliver Robotic Servicing Arm 1 this fall. Teams are completing development on Robotic Servicing Arm 2, SPIDER and SPIDER’s modular antenna, all set for delivery in 2024. OSAM-1 will continue integration and testing at NASA Goddard through 2026.

The choice for precision missions

Flexible and modular, the Maxar 1300™ series bus is the industry's most popular spacecraft. NASA chose it for exacting missions like the Psyche deep space explorer and as host to the TEMPO weather instrument. More than 90 other Maxar 1300 spacecraft serve a variety of missions in orbit today.

Meet the Maxar 1300 bus
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