Naomi Cooper
Blue Canyon Technologies, a subsidiary of Raytheon Technologies, has secured a $14.6 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to develop and demonstrate a small satellite bus for operations beyond geosynchronous Earth orbit.
The contractor will build a satellite capable of operating and maneuvering for up to three years in orbits beyond GEO under the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Space Situational Awareness Micro-Satellite Bus program, the Department of Defense said Monday.
The small satellite bus is also intended to provide support for a broad range of payloads throughout its operation.
Work will be conducted at the small satellite manufacturer’s facility in Lafayette, Colorado, through Feb. 28, 2023.
AFRL obligated $1.6 million in research and development funding for fiscal year 2021 at the time of the award.
The contract was awarded following a competitive procurement process under the Air Force’s Small Business Innovation Research program.
