News
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2026 COSMIC Virtual Convergence Recap
Thank you to everyone who joined us for this year’s Virtual Convergence and to our outstanding speakers who made it such a success! We kicked off with Bo Naasz, COSMIC Steering Committee Chair, who shared insights on the State of COSMIC and highlighted several exciting NASA opportunities currently available. Joe Anderson, Vice President of Space Logistics, provided a compelling briefing on the future of Mission Robotic Vehicles (MRVs). Several of our Steering Committee members—Bernie Kelm, Stephen Duall, Joe Anderson, and Brad Kinsey—participated in an engaging panel discussion on COSMIC’s pivotal role in the future of ISAM. Additionally, COSMIC’s own Alec Cavaciuti delivered updates on our latest Use Case Reports. The event concluded with presentations from each Focus Area lead, who shared exciting new developments in their respective areas and participated in a panel to offer further insights, perspectives, and…
NASA Space Roboticist Challenge Now Open for the Fly Foundational Robots (FFR) Mission
NASA is seeking U.S. researchers to lead experiments on the Fly Foundational Robots (FFR) Mission. The NASA Space Roboticist Challenge invites principal investigators, post-doctoral researchers, professors, and graduate students to compete for allocated time on a 7-Degree-of-Freedom robotic arm in Low Earth Orbit, supporting NASA’s In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) strategy. Registration is open now at SpaceRoboticistChallenge.com. White paper submissions open June 9th during the COSMIC Virtual Convergence 2026, so if you’re joining us that week, this is your moment to learn more and get in. Administered by Floor23 Digital on behalf of NASA. Learn more at https://floor23digital.com/space-roboticist-challenge/
COSMIC Report Released: Regulations 103: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of State
COSMIC’s new report, “Regulations 103: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of State,” from our Policy & Regulation Focus Area is now available for public release! Prepared by Tony Lin, Sabrina Jawed, and Ryan Guglietta, this report is a summary of their January 15th workshop that discussed the process for obtaining FAA payload safety review and space object registrations and when and why such authorizations are necessary for In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) operations This new publication along with the other publicly released ISAM products can be found here.
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2025-2026 COSMIC Capstone Challenge Final Showcase
On April 13th -16th, COSMIC’s Workforce Development Focus Area hosted the Second Annual COSMIC Capstone Challenge (C3) Showcase! 34 teams of 280+ college students from around the country showcased their presentations in competition to develop In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) concepts. Over the four-day competition, presentations were made in-person and virtually spanning the El…
Continue Reading > 2025-2026 COSMIC Capstone Challenge Final Showcase
2025 – 2026 C3 Winners Announced!
Thank you to all the students, advisors, mentors, judges, and organizers for making the 2nd Annual COSMIC Capstone Challenge a huge success! We had 34 teams compete this year, and the 28 judges collectively made 223 evaluations, at least five for each presenting team. We are very excited to announce this year’s overall winner: Deep…
June 2026: COSMIC Virtual Convergence
We will be hosting a June Virtual Convergence general membership meeting on June 9th and June 10th, 2026. Join us online as we gather to discuss what progress we have made as a consortium and where we should go in the years ahead. Our joint COSMIC/CONFERS in-person meeting will now be postponed to the end…
COSMIC Report Released: The Economics of Orbital Mass: How Depots Can Work in LEO and Where to Put Them
The Missions & Ecosystems Focus Area has released a new report, The Economics of Orbital Mass: How Depots Can Work in LEO and Where to Put Them. Written by Greg Vialle of Lunexus Space, Adam Kall of Kall Morris Inc., and Robert MacPherson of Rogue Space Systems Corporation, this report addresses why LEO depots are essential and outlines key considerations for satellite neighborhood selection.
COSMIC Report Identifies Opportunities, Gaps and Needs for Geostationary Refueling
he Consortium for Space Mobility and ISAM Capabilities (COSMIC) has published an analysis of the current and future prospects of on-orbit refueling in geostationary orbit (GEO), finding that “significant work remains” to make this key use case “reliable and routine” for national security, civil and commercial space to leverage in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (ISAM) capabilities.
Two ISAM Products Released
The Policy and Regulations Focus Area have set two COSMIC ISAM products for public release.
COSMIC October Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our non-member October newsletter.
COSMIC September Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our non-member September newsletter.
Building Tomorrow’s Space Workforce: COSMIC’s ISAM Education Course Initiative
We’re currently seeking Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) from across the nation to review the curriculum, lead individual courses, and shape the next generation of space professionals.
Continue Reading > Building Tomorrow’s Space Workforce: COSMIC’s ISAM Education Course Initiative
Workshop Announcement: Cost and Value Modeling of On-Orbit Servicing
This critical topic comes as leaders throughout the domestic space enterprise have been agitating for a more thoughtful, comprehensive, and cohesive approach to ISAM adoption.
Continue Reading > Workshop Announcement: Cost and Value Modeling of On-Orbit Servicing
Vote For COSMIC at SXSW
COSMIC members are again ready showcase recent advancements and newly discovered opportunities with ISAM at South By SouthWest (SXSW).
COSMIC August Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our August non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
NASA Expanding Commercial ISAM Testing, New Agreement Signed
The SAA between NASA and Astroscale U.S. is designed as a framework model for future umbrella agreements to enable efficient, scalable partnerships for other domestic companies pursuing commercial In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) solutions.
Continue Reading > NASA Expanding Commercial ISAM Testing, New Agreement Signed
2025-26 COSMIC Capstone Challenge (C3) Announcement
COSMIC Capstone Challenge (C3) is a dynamic design competition for U.S.-based college students to develop conceptual missions and spacecraft operations designs, ranging from in-space assembly to lunar infrastructure.
Continue Reading > 2025-26 COSMIC Capstone Challenge (C3) Announcement
GAO Releases ISAM Tech Assessment
This new document serves as the latest validation that ISAM capabilities can and will provide a tremendous value in future space architectures and does so with a sober acknowledgement of the difficulties that have yet to be overcome.
NASA Awards Four SBIR Awards For ISAM
NASA has announced the winners of their Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) investment grants to small businesses, which include four companies who submitted proposals under the category “Servicing and Assembly Applications,” or ISAM.
COSMIC July Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our July non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
COSMIC Crossroads Documentary Released
COSMIC Crossroads explores how America is leading efforts to build a Space Superhighway — and how ISAM technologies are being developed by organizations across the nation to maintain U.S leadership in space.
A Successful Convergence On ISAM
Our second annual membership meeting and workshop brought together a wide-ranging group of over 200 individuals from academia, government, and industry to create an enriching environment for In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) collaboration and innovation.
COSMIC June Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our June non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
COSMIC May Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our May non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
COSMIC Capstone Challenge Finals Were A Success!
Twenty-three groups of 230+ college students from around the country showcased their presentations in competition to develop In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) concepts.
Continue Reading > COSMIC Capstone Challenge Finals Were A Success!
COSMIC Leadership Nominations Open
COSMIC participants currently have the opportunity to nominate individuals from the ISAM community to help guide the direction of the Consortium over the next year.
Convergence Keynote Announced
COSMIC is honored to announce that the Keynote Speaker for Convergence 2025, themed “Space: Some Assembly Required,” will be Dr. Roberta M Ewart, Chief Technology Officer for the Space Systems Command (SSC) at Los Angeles Space Force Base.
COSMIC April Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our April non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
In-Space Fluid Transfer AIAA Standard Published
As In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) continues to become more entrenched in space architecture designs, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has published the first-ever industry standard for in-space storable fluid transfer.
Continue Reading > In-Space Fluid Transfer AIAA Standard Published
COSMIC March Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our March non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
COSMIC Members Present During OSC/NIST Space Seminar
On February 13th, NOAA Office of Space Commerce and NIST hosted a seminar entitled Building an In-Space Circular Economy to explore what it will take for domestic leadership to achieve a safe, scalable, and sustainable space ecosystem with numerous COSMIC members presenting.
Continue Reading > COSMIC Members Present During OSC/NIST Space Seminar
COSMIC February Newsletter
This is a shortened version of our February non-member newsletter. If you would like the complete newsletter in the future, join COSMIC.
Successful Capture Demonstration With REACCH
COSMIC Member Kall Morris Inc (KMI) has completed another in-space demonstration of its REACHH arm, showcasing the tentacle-like robotic arms ability to successfully capture and release objects in microgravity.
Continue Reading > Successful Capture Demonstration With REACCH
NASA Includes ISAM Amongst 2025 NIAC Winners
NASA announced their 2025 NIAC (NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts) Selections last week which include a number of In-Space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) projects.
Continue Reading > NASA Includes ISAM Amongst 2025 NIAC Winners
COSMIC January Newsletter
COSMIC and ISAM publicly available updates, programming, and news in the January newsletter.
COSMIC December Newsletter
COSMIC and ISAM publicly available updates, programming, and news in the December newsletter.
Opportunity To Partner With NASA On LiDAR
For those who may be interested in partnering with NASA on their Kodiak Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) Engineering Test Unit, please review and engage with their recently posted RFI. Responses must be submitted by January 10th.
Continue Reading > Opportunity To Partner With NASA On LiDAR
COSMIC Capstone Challenge Hosts Successful Student Flash Talks
Thirty-four groups of college and high school students showcased their progress in a national competition to develop In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) concepts.
Continue Reading > COSMIC Capstone Challenge Hosts Successful Student Flash Talks
December Virtual Convergence Wrap-Up
COSMIC’s 2024 December Virtual Convergence brought together nearly 250 ISAM-practitioners to share ideas, insights, and innovations to further advance US leadership in space.
COSMIC November Newsletter
COSMIC and ISAM publicly available updates, programming, and news in the November newsletter.
COSMIC Year One: By The Numbers
November 7th marks the one-year anniversary of the launch of the Consortium for Space Mobility and ISAM Capabilities (COSMIC). In this short time, an unprecedented foundation of cooperation, coordination, and collaboration has been built by members nationwide.
Join COSMIC Leaders at the CONFERS Conference
Numerous COSMIC members will be in attendance or presenting and the CONFERS international conference is a wonderful opportunity to learn from and collaborate with other ISAM practitioners.
Continue Reading > Join COSMIC Leaders at the CONFERS Conference
Impending Rule Changes To Space-Related Export Controls
The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has released three changes, one as a Final Rule, one Interim Final Rule, and one Proposed Rule, to modernize BIS’s space-related export controls.
Continue Reading > Impending Rule Changes To Space-Related Export Controls
COSMIC October Newsletter
COSMIC and ISAM publicly available updates, programming, and news in the October newsletter.
NASA Opportunity Regarding Active Cooling Using Cryocoolers
NASA is working to advance active cooling technology using cryocoolers and is seeking responses from industry for technologies and strategies that will meet future human exploration performance objectives reliably.
Continue Reading > NASA Opportunity Regarding Active Cooling Using Cryocoolers
NASA Posts RFI Regarding On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacture (OSAM-1)
COSMIC encourages input to the NASA RFI for OSAM-1 Partnerships from the COSMIC community and all partners interested in ISAM technologies in order to better understand the partnership potential to further these technologies.
Continue Reading > NASA Posts RFI Regarding On-Orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacture (OSAM-1)
COSMIC Announces C3 Design Challenge
The Consortium for Space Mobility and In-space Servicing, Assembly and Manufacturing (ISAM) Capabilities (COSMIC) is launching an annual student challenge to design and demonstrate novel capabilities in space.