Polaris Intelligence
Polaris
Intelligence
AboutNational IntelligenceOrganizationsProductsMissionsSpacecraftConstellationsForecastsLatest Information
Explore
© Polaris Intelligence 2026Admin

Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)

US
gov defense
United States
Admin Edit

All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.

The Air Force Research Laboratory signed an agreement with ABL Space Systems to jointly develop and test rocket propulsion components for future use in launch vehicles.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Narrative GeneralJan 9, 2020Small launch startup ABL Space Systems to test rocket hardware at Edwards Air Force Base

ABL Space Systems established a presence at Edwards Air Force Base test site 1-56 of the AFRL rocket propulsion division.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipJan 9, 2020Small launch startup ABL Space Systems to test rocket hardware at Edwards Air Force Base

AFRL did not disclose the 2019-07-10 CRADA with ABL Space Systems until 2020-01-09 at ABL Space Systems’ request.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Narrative GeneralJan 9, 2020Small launch startup ABL Space Systems to test rocket hardware at Edwards Air Force Base

A three-year cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) between AFRL and ABL Space Systems was signed on 2019-07-10.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Narrative GeneralJan 9, 2020Small launch startup ABL Space Systems to test rocket hardware at Edwards Air Force Base

Space Vector will launch a suborbital mission named Precise from Wallops Island in fall 2020 to test readiness of space flight components for future orbital flights under an AFRL mission.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Narrative GeneralDec 18, 2019Air Force to schedule nine small launch missions in 2020

OTV-5 hosted the Air Force Research Laboratory’s second Advanced Structurally Embedded Thermal Spreader experiment (ASETS-II).

Mentioned as: Air Force Research LaboratoryTechnical ProductOct 27, 2019Air Force X-37B secret spaceplane lands after 780 days in orbit

Deployable Space Systems tested a ROSA lightweight flexible blanket array on the International Space Station in 2017 with support from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and NASA.

Mentioned as: air force research laboratoryTechnical ProductOct 3, 2019Maxar selects Deployable Space Systems to build solar arrays for Gateway’s Power and Propulsion Element

The Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles directorate awarded Viasat a $10,000,000 contract in May to test whether a Link 16 terminal on a small satellite could serve as a communications network relay in a program called XVI.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipAug 19, 2019Viasat taps Blue Canyon Technologies to build Link 16 satellite

DSX was designed and built at the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Space Vehicles Directorate at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research LaboratoryOrg RelationshipJul 24, 2019Air Force experimental satellite billed as the ‘largest unmanned structure in space’

AFRL’s DSX satellite, spanning nearly the length of a football field, was deployed on 2019-07-12.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Narrative GeneralJul 24, 2019Air Force experimental satellite billed as the ‘largest unmanned structure in space’

China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, through its subsidiary Expace, will provide the Kuaizhou-11 at a rate of $5,000 per kilogram to LEO, which the AFRL-DIU report characterizes as five times less expensive than comparable launch capabilities.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipJun 17, 2019Air Force, DoD research organizations call for space industrial policies to counter China

The Air Force Research Laboratory and the Defense Innovation Unit produced a 2019-05-30 report titled "State of the Space Industrial Base: Threats, Challenges and Actions."

Mentioned as: the air force research laboratoryNarrative GeneralJun 17, 2019Air Force, DoD research organizations call for space industrial policies to counter China

The $10,000,000 contract awarded to Viasat is for a pilot program led by the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles directorate to test a Link 16 terminal on a small satellite in low Earth orbit as a network relay.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipMay 22, 2019Viasat selected to develop military Link 16 communications satellite in low Earth orbit

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT) was awarded a contract by the Administrator of the Space Enterprise Consortium under the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles XVI program to deliver and test a Link 16-capable Low Earth Orbit spacecraft.

Mentioned as: the air force research laboratoryTechnical ProductMay 21, 2019Viasat Contracted to Deliver the World’s First Link 16-Capable Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Spacecraft

Space Plug and Play Architecture Research CubeSat-1 (SPARC-1) is sponsored by the Air Force Research Laboratory in cooperation with the Swedish military to test modular spacecraft avionics.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Narrative GeneralApr 3, 2019Rocket Lab to launch Air Force satellites

The Air Force Research Laboratory will launch the experimental PNT satellite NTS-3 in 2022.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipMar 16, 2019Air Force experiment NTS-3 could point the way to the next generation of GPS

AFRL’s Space Vehicles Directorate awarded an $80,400,000 contract for NTS-3 to Harris Corporation in December.

Mentioned as: afrlTechnical ProductMar 16, 2019Air Force experiment NTS-3 could point the way to the next generation of GPS

AFRL’s ESPAStar bus was used for the ESPA Augmented Geostationary Laboratory Experiment (EAGLE) that launched on an Atlas 5 rocket.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipMar 16, 2019Air Force experiment NTS-3 could point the way to the next generation of GPS

AFRL awarded Braxton Technologies a Small Business Innovation Research contract in 2017 to develop the ground system for NTS-3.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research Lab (AFRL)Org RelationshipMar 16, 2019Air Force experiment NTS-3 could point the way to the next generation of GPS

The Air Force experimentation office is part of the Air Force Research Laboratory and works directly with Air Force and Department of Defense leaders at the Pentagon.

Mentioned as: Air Force Research LaboratoryOrg RelationshipFeb 28, 2019Air Force laying groundwork for future military use of commercial megaconstellations
Page22of23