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Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)

US

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is the primary research and development center for the Department of the Air Force, playing a key role in developing warfighting technologies for air, space, and cyberspace. As an integrated lab, AFRL supports both the Air Force and the Space Force, providing solutions ranging from satellites and rocket fuel to advanced materials and manufacturing processes. AFRL partners with organizations like NASA, other government agencies, academia, and industry to conduct research, develop technologies, and test new concepts for space-based capabilities, including space weather observation and data transport. Key areas of focus include space vehicles, rocket propulsion, directed energy, and advanced materials for aerospace systems.

gov defense
United States
www.afrl.af.mil/
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All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.

Kratos Unmanned Systems Division was awarded a $17,677,612, 12-month, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to design and develop an Off Board Sensing Station (OBSS) unmanned aerial system in support of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Autonomous Collaborative Platforms technology maturation portfolio.

RelationshipsFinancialPlanCapabilityValue 5.0Oct 27, 2021Kratos Awarded Million$$ For AFRL OBSS UAS Development

EXTREME technologies are being employed in AFRL SDCP projects including Integrated Compact Electro-Optic/Infrared Systems (ICES), the XQ-58 Valkyrie, and the Air Launched Off-Board Operations (ALOBO) program.

GeneralValue 3.4Oct 27, 2021DARPA + NGA Develop Novel Optics To Field Military + Government Imaging Systems Prototypes To Support Warfighters

AFRL is relying on EXTREME technology to modify EO/IR systems on the XQ-58 and ALOBO developmental platforms.

CapabilityGeneralValue 4.0Oct 27, 2021DARPA + NGA Develop Novel Optics To Field Military + Government Imaging Systems Prototypes To Support Warfighters

Rogue Space Systems announced the $1,100,000 AFRL CRADA in December 2020.

RelationshipsFinancialValue 4.0Oct 20, 2021Rogue Space Completes Several Milestones, Including The Closing Of Their Initial Investment Round

The $1,600,000 raise consists of $500,000 in cash and a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the Air Force Research Laboratory valued at $1,100,000 in in-kind services.

FinancialLegalRelationshipsValue 4.0Oct 20, 2021Rogue Space Completes Several Milestones, Including The Closing Of Their Initial Investment Round

Orbit Fab signed a technology sharing agreement with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory on 2021-10-13.

RelationshipsValue 4.2Oct 14, 2021Orbit Fab signs technology sharing agreement with U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory

Orbit Fab expects the CRADA with the Air Force Research Laboratory to reduce the risk necessary to bring refueling to Department of Defense space assets.

RelationshipsValue 3.8Oct 14, 2021Orbit Fab signs technology sharing agreement with U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory

The 18 P3 satellites will include 12 UHF and S-band satellites and six satellites that will carry yet-to-be-determined payloads from the Air Force Research Laboratory, the U.S. Army, or the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

CapabilityPlanValue 4.0Sep 27, 2021Space Development Agency revises Transport Layer procurement, with fewer satellites per launch

The test firing of the eSR-73 demonstration motor builds upon Aerojet Rocketdyne's work for the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory on the Missile Components Advanced Technologies Demonstration Motor program.

PlanCapabilityValue 3.0Sep 22, 2021Aerojet Rocketdyne’s Arkansas Site Ready To Produce Large, Solid Rocket Motors

The CAS program started in 2016 when the Air Force Research Laboratory awarded Braxton Science and Technology Group a small business innovation research contract to explore commercial augmentation of the military satellite control network.

RelationshipsPlanValue 4.0Sep 19, 2021Space Force grappling with aging infrastructure used to operate satellites

At its Central Florida location, L3Harris is developing and testing the experimental Navigation Technology Satellite-3 (NTS-3) for the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory.

CapabilityPlanValue 4.3Sep 16, 2021L3Harris opens manufacturing facility in Indiana for DoD missile-defense satellites

Benchmark Space Systems is working with the Air Force Research Laboratory and industry partners to develop a multimode electric-chemical engine that uses a common propellant tank.

CapabilityRelationshipsValue 4.2Sep 9, 2021Satellite propulsion startup Benchmark eyes growth in military market

Northrop Grumman tests the Arrays at Commercial Timescales Integration and Validation (ACT-IV) digital AESA system for the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at the company radar range in Linthicum, Maryland.

CapabilityGeneralValue 4.0Sep 8, 2021AFRL + DARPA Receive The Advanced Multifunction Sensor System From Northrop Grumman

Phase Four won a contract on 2021-08-18 at the U.S. Space Force’s first SpaceWERX Pitch Day to fuel its Maxwell engine with the green propellant ASCENT developed by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory.

RelationshipsPlanCapabilityValue 4.5Aug 25, 2021Phase Four Maxwell to test green propellant

Dr. Eckhardt, Electric Propulsion Lead at the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, supports propellant flexibility to provide new options for in-space propulsion and to improve satellite maneuverability and operability at an affordable cost.

GovernanceCapabilityValue 2.6Aug 25, 2021Phase Four Developing Iodine-Based RF Plasma Propulsion + Partners With AFRL

Phase Four is partnering with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and working closely with NASA to advance iodine electric propulsion.

RelationshipsCapabilityValue 3.8Aug 25, 2021Phase Four Developing Iodine-Based RF Plasma Propulsion + Partners With AFRL

The Air Force Research Laboratory’s Space Vehicles Directorate announced plans in 2020 for the Cislunar Highway Patrol System to detect and track objects between geosynchronous orbit and the Moon.

PlanValue 4.0Aug 24, 2021Updated intelligence report calls for improved monitoring of cislunar space

Lisa Rich, Xplore Founder and Chief Operating Officer, supports development of a cislunar architecture intended to provide communication, data distribution, and transportation beyond Earth orbit and to align with initiatives of the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory’s Space Vehicles Directorate and the evolving goals of the U.S. Space Force.

CapabilityGeneralValue 2.8Aug 24, 2021USAF Contract For A PNT Solution To Be Developed By Xplore For Advanced Lunar Missions + Cislunar Space

The 2021-07-26 Electron launch placed Monolith, a smallsat developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory, into orbit.

PlanCapabilityGeneralValue 4.0Aug 6, 2021Rocket Lab shifts CAPSTONE launch to New Zealand

Following L3 Harris’s work, the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) tests the bus using the NTS-3 ground control and user equipment segments.

CapabilityGeneralValue 3.5Aug 2, 2021NTS-3 mission takes a leap towards launch in 2023
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