The Canadian Astronomical Society has sought international partners for a Phase A study of CASTOR.
The memorandum provides a mechanism for South Korea to formally join the UK Space Agency and NASA on the CASTOR project.
The long-term detector testing and characterization program for CASTOR is a collaboration between NRC, JPL, Teledyne-e2v, Open University, CSA, the University of Calgary, and the University of Manitoba.
The Cosmological Advanced Survey Telescope for Optical and UV Research (CASTOR) space telescope was first identified in the 2010-2020 Long Range Plan for the astronomy community.
The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and the National Research Council Canada (NRC) have held several high-level meetings to define the roles and responsibilities for a proposed Phase A+ study for CASTOR.
The Canadian government appears supportive of the CASTOR mission, although no explicit budget allocation was made for it in the November 4 budget.
Several members of the CASTOR team submitted a response to the CSA Request for Information on Canadian Contributions to the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO).
The Coalition for Canadian Astronomy recommends investing $20 million in the Phase A+ development of the CASTOR mission.
Northrop Grumman will provide avionics and software, upper-stage structures, the Castor 30XL motor, vehicle integration, and launch pad operations for the Antares 330.