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.
DARPA coordinated its LunA-10 plans with NASA's Moon to Mars Architecture.
Phil Root, director of DARPA's Strategic Technology Office, stated that investments in technology maturation for lunar infrastructure might catalyze the lunar economy.
Northrop Grumman won a DARPA grant to study a lunar railroad network for transporting humans, supplies, and resources across the lunar surface.
Thirteen companies were awarded LunA-10 contracts by DARPA in December 2022.
DARPA has identified the concept of 'thermal as a service' for lunar missions, focusing on thermal management.
The Northrop lunar railroad project is part of the 10-Year Lunar Architecture Capability Study, or LunA-10, at DARPA.
DARPA's LunA-10 intends to become a field guide to the lunar economy, documenting technologies and services.
DARPA discussed initial results of the LunA-10 study at a meeting of the Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium last month.
DARPA awarded a contract to GITAI at the end of last year.
DISA is partnering with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to test trained AI models on cyber data for detecting anomalous behavior.
The $14,900,000 award is part of DARPA's Otter program to develop, demonstrate, and collect on-orbit data for air-breathing electric propulsion technologies that harvest ambient low-density air as propellant to enable extended satellite operations at VLEO altitudes.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency awarded Phase Four a $14,900,000 contract to deliver an air-breathing electric propulsion system for extended satellite operations in Very Low Earth Orbit at altitudes of about 90–450 km.
DARPA seeks to prevent strategic surprise by adversaries and to create its own strategic surprise through technology development.
DARPA has tested autonomy and artificial intelligence with the U.S. Air Force involving F-16 fighter jets.
SpaceLogistics signed a cooperative agreement with DARPA in 2020 that allows the Mission Robotics Vehicle to deploy robotic arms.
SpaceLogistics is equipping the Mission Robotics Vehicle with two robot arms designed by the Naval Research Laboratory with DARPA funding under an agreement with DARPA.
The servicing vehicle is equipped with a robot arm developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Naval Research Laboratory to connect a payload to a satellite’s launch adapter ring.
DARPA’s LunA-10 Capability Study seeks to shift from individual scientific projects to shared, scalable lunar systems that work together and to establish an analytical framework for integrated lunar infrastructure that minimizes lunar footprint and provides commercial services for future lunar users.
Northrop Grumman Corporation was selected by DARPA to further develop the concept of a moon-based railroad network as part of the Lunar Architecture (LunA-10) Capability Study.
DARPA selected Northrop Grumman Corporation to further develop the concept of a moon-based railroad network as part of the Lunar Architecture (LunA-10) Capability Study.