Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. has built a new manufacturing center for building satellites under contracts from NASA and the Defense Department. The company said it completed a 90,000-square-foot expansion project at its integration facility in Boulder, Colo., finishing work that started in 2005. This expansion complements another expansion project …
Read More »Ball Aerospace Wraps Up Webb Telescope Mirror Temprature Testing; David Taylor Comments
Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. has wrapped up performance tests of a subsystem for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope under a contract with Northrop Grumman. Ball said it is the principal subcontractor to Northrop for the telescope’s optical technology and mirror system and has tested the aft-optics subsystem since May 2012. …
Read More »Ball Aerospace Completes Weather Satellite Spacecraft Review; David Taylor Comments
A Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. team has reviewed the design of a weather monitoring satellite for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The company said it reviewed the Joint Polar Satellite System-1 spacecraft before more than 100 representatives from the agencies and instrument providers for the JPSS-1 spacecraft. …
Read More »Lockheed, Ball Aerospace Present F-35 Cockpit Demonstrator; David Taylor Comments
Lockheed Martin and Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. presented an F-35 cockpit demonstrator Wednesday at Ball Aerospace’s antenna manufacturing facility in Westminster, Colo. Ball Aerospace said in a release attendees were able to test the cockpit in a simulator that provides a look at the jet’s sensor fusion technology and …
Read More »Ball Aerospace Hands NASA Webb Telescope First 2 Webb Mirrors
Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. has delivered two of the 18 primary mirrors needed for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The agency said it is inspecting the mirrors and storing them at the Goddard cleanroom until engineers are ready to assemble them …
Read More »NASA Awards Contractors, Academic Institutions Space Launch System R&D Funds
NASA has selected 26 research and development proposals from academia and industry for the advancement of the agency’s next heavy lift rocket named the Space Launch System. The $48 million investment includes proposals for the SLS’ concept development, trades and analyses, propulsion, structures, materials, manufacturing, avionics and software. William Gerstenmaier, …
Read More »Contractor-Supported Telescope Finds Hidden Galaxies, Black Holes; Hashima Hasan Comments
A NASA telescope has discovered new candidates for black holes and close to 1,000 dust-obscured objects the agency believes could be galaxies, the agency announced Wednesday. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. built the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer spacecraft, both DRS Technologies and Rockwell made the focal planes and Lockheed Martin made …
Read More »Ball, Boeing Help Get AF Space Surveillance Satellite Running; Robert Davidson Comments
Block 10 of the U.S. Air Force‘s Space Based Space Surveillance satellite constellation has been designated for initial operational capability, the branch announced Monday. Boeing and Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. both worked with the Space and Missile Systems Center, Air Force Space Command headquarters and the U.S. Strategic Command’s …
Read More »NASA Picks Ball Aerospace to Develop 'Green' Propellant Technology
NASA has chosen Ball Aerospace Technology Corporation to develop “green” propellant technology for replacing hydrazine, a highly toxic fuel used for rockets, satellites, and spacecrafts. It was announced August 15 that NASA awarded the Colorado-based firm with the $45 million Space Technology Program funded mission to develop green propellant that …
Read More »Ball Aerospace to Provide NOAA Weather Satellite Comm System
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. will incorporate a data communication payload on a satellite the federal government will use to predict weather and measure atmospheric conditions. The company said the Joint Polar Satellite System-1 satellite will have a five-instrument payload and use two data networks, one of them having a …
Read More »BAE, Ball Aerospace, Dell Help Land NASA Mars Rover; Sarah Milkovich Comments
BAE Systems Inc., Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. and Dell have announced their roles in helping NASA deliver and land the Curiosity Rover on Mars late Sunday night. BAE’s U.S. subsidiary built the rover’s X-ray spectrometer, a laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy system, organic sample analysis systems and systems for detecting radiation …
Read More »Ball To Carry AF Payloads For Plasma, Solar Study; David Taylor Comments
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. will carry five payloads and a de-orbit module onboard a spacecraft the company will launch in 2013, the company announced Tuesday. President and CEO David Taylor said in a release the company built the STPSat-3 spacecraft for the U.S. Air Force in 47 days. He …
Read More »Ball Aerospace Gives NASA Its Solar Mission Plan
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. has proposed a solar electric propulsion mission to NASA under a contract awarded in September 2011, the company announced Monday. ATK also helped develop the plans for demonstrating the solar technologies and infrastructure require to sustain human space exploration. Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman …
Read More »Ball Aerospace Names Steve Smith Director of Space Control, Special Missions
Ball Aerospace and Technology has named Steve Smith director of space control and special missions. In his new role, Smith will assist Ball’s national defense business unit. Smith joins Ball after a 24-year career in the Air Force, retiring with the rank of colonel. His most recent position was commander …
Read More »Webb Telescope Goes Into Deep Freeze
Mirrors constructed by Northrop Grumman and Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. for use on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope are ready for deep-freeze testing. NASA said the mirrors will begin final cryogenic testing this week. The test is designed to show how the mirrors will respond to space’s extreme temperatures. …
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