University SmallSat Technology Partnerships
NASA’s University SmallSat Technology Partnership (USTP) initiative, formerly called SmallSat Technology Partnerships, supports university-based technologies with the potential to advance the small spacecraft industry. The program aims to enhance the capabilities of SmallSats as a platform for innovative research and technology demonstrations, contributing to the nation’s lunar and deep space exploration objectives and high-priority science.
Between 2013 and 2020, NASA awarded five USTP classes comprised of university and NASA teams for a total award of more than $26 million. As of April 2022, eight out of the 10 NASA centers (including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, a federally funded research center) have supported the university partnerships. That support has advanced affordable SmallSat technologies with applications in areas like autonomous swarm operation using radio frequency and optical navigation, improved thermal management, and propulsion.
