The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency within the U.S. Department of Defense, responsible for creating breakthrough technologies for national security. While not a space agency, DARPA initiates and manages high-risk, high-payoff projects relevant to space, including satellite constellations, space-based surveillance tech, lunar habitats, and advanced propulsion systems like nuclear thermal rockets. DARPA partners with various organizations, including NASA, U.S. Space Force, Lockheed Martin, SpaceX, and BAE Systems, to achieve its goals. Keywords associated with DARPA's space activities include space superiority, space-based weaponry, advanced materials, and autonomous systems.
All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.
The MRV integrates a flight-proven station-keeping platform from Northrop Grumman with a government-funded payload developed by DARPA and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory.
On May 21, 2026, DARPA and Northrop Grumman finalized the schedule for the Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites (RSGS) mission.
DARPA's RSGS program and the Mission Robotic Vehicle are slated for summer 2026.
DARPA's RSGS program and the Mission Robotic Vehicle will bring robotic servicing to satellites in geosynchronous orbit.
DARPA is collaborating with the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, NASA, and SpaceLogistics on a sustainable, upgradable, and resilient space infrastructure.
DARPA’s RSGS program and its Mission Robotic Vehicle are slated for summer 2026 to bring robotic servicing to satellites in geosynchronous orbit.
DARPA’s robotic servicing spacecraft is scheduled to fly this summer.
DARPA is investing in domestic gallium nitride foundry capacity through programs including the Technologies for Mixed-Mode Ultra Scaled Integrated Circuits initiative.
Orion Space Solutions’ signature program is the DARPA Ouija mission.
The DARPA Ouija mission is a nanosatellite designed for long-duration operations in very low Earth orbit.
The DARPA Ouija mission is built to quantify the HF noise environment in space and validate near-real-time propagation predictions from the F2 layer of the ionosphere.
The DARPA Ouija mission completed its test readiness review in mid-2025.
The DARPA Ouija mission carries Langmuir probes, RF impedance probes, HF sounders, and atomic oxygen sensors.
Diffraqtion’s quantum camera technology is based on research by co-founder Prof. Saikat Guha with NASA and DARPA.
Diffraqtion’s January 2026 financing included a non-dilutive DARPA Small Business Innovation Research Direct-to-Phase II contract for space domain awareness applications.
The DARPA contract funds on-sky demonstrations of Diffraqtion’s quantum camera on ground-based telescopes through 2027.
BWX Technologies was selected to supply the nuclear reactor and fuel for DARPA’s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations program.
DARPA canceled the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations program in 2025.
Momentus Space has approximately $4.2 million in contracts with DARPA for the Vigoride 7 mission.
Redwire was awarded a $44 million phase 2 contract during the fourth quarter of 2025 to advance the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s Otter mission leveraging Redwire’s SabreSat.