OSAM-1

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OSAM-1 (On-orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing 1) was a cancelled NASA spacecraft designed to test on-orbit refilling of satellites. It was previously known as Restore-L. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Originally scheduled to launch in 2020, [4] its launch at the time of cancellation was planned for no earlier than 2026. [5] Its primary objective was the complex refueling of Landsat 7, a satellite launched in 1999. This would have involved grasping the satellite with a mechanical arm, gaining access to the satellite's fuel tank by cutting through insulation and wires and unscrewing a bolt, and then attaching a hose to pump in hydrazine fuel. This was expected to have been the first refueling of a satellite in space, and a demonstration of the potential to repair the thousands of active satellites in orbit and keep them in operation. [1] Because the satellites now in space were not designed to be serviced, there are significant challenges to doing so successfully. [1] [2]

OSAM-1's second objective was to deploy a separate robot called SPIDER (Space Infrastructure Dexterous Robot) to build a new structure in space. Using robots to build and assemble new structural components from scratch would be an important step towards a type of space-based construction that had been impossible to date. [1]

Description

The OSAM-1 spacecraft was to include:

History

In 2016, NASA's Restore-L satellite was intended to refuel Landsat 7. [4]

In 2020, SPIDER was added and the name was changed from Restore-L to OSAM-1.

On 1 March 2024, NASA announced that OSAM-1 had been cancelled due to "continued technical, cost, and schedule challenges, and a broader community evolution away from refueling unprepared spacecraft." [6]

Cost & legacy

At cancellation in 2024, about $2 Billion had been "invested". [7]

Progression

A subsequent mission, OSAM-2 will also have two robotic arms. [8] OSAM-2 will use ModuLink software which is based on xLink. [8]

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landsat 7</span> American Earth-observing satellite launched in 1999 as part of the Landsat program

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Kleiner, Kurt (24 February 2022). "Orbiting robots could help fix and fuel satellites in space". Knowable Magazine. doi: 10.1146/knowable-022422-1 . S2CID   247119849 . Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  2. 1 2 Henshaw, Carl Glen; Glassner, Samantha; Naasz, Bo; Roberts, Brian (3 May 2022). "Grappling Spacecraft". Annual Review of Control, Robotics, and Autonomous Systems. 5: 137–159. doi:10.1146/annurev-control-042920-011106. ISSN   2573-5144. S2CID   242628083 . Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  3. ↑ "OSAM-1 Mission". NASA. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  4. 1 2 Hall, Loura (22 June 2016). "NASA's Restore-L Mission to Refuel Landsat 7, Demonstrate Technologies". NASA. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  5. ↑ "OSAM-1: Proving Satellite Servicing—Starting with Landsat 7". Goddard Space Flight Center . NASA. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  6. ↑ Foust, Jeff (1 March 2024). "NASA cancels OSAM-1 satellite servicing technology mission". SpaceNews . Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  7. ↑ NASA Ends $2 Billion Satellite Refueling Project Amid Challenges 2024
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