By  Theresa Hitchens

The Defense Innovation Unit is looking to prototype “commercial refueling services” near the prime space real estate of Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO), as well a “bulk fuel depot” in any orbital regime — and is asking both US and international companies for proposed solutions by April 18.

“With the tens of thousands of satellites to comprise the growing space economy, the ability to service and maintain a fleet of service platforms efficiently requires convenient and readily available fuel,” David Ryan, DIU programme manager for the effort, told Breaking Defense. “A sustainable space economy is one that prolongs the life of these spacecraft, reducing the need for replacement and the accumulation of space debris.”

The DIU RAPIDS Refueling and Fuel Depot solicitation, issued last week, says that the ability “to refuel and maneuver are paramount to safety, stationkeeping and servicing.” “Future space systems require the ability to maneuver without regret. As such, these spacecraft must be serviceable and have ready access to commoditized fuel of varying types across many orbits.”

Ryan, whose nickname is Merlin, said DIU intends “to spearhead a meaningful demonstration of this capability — highlighting the need for interfaces and standards to be widely adopted across governments and industry so that refueling a spacecraft is as straightforward as filling your car at the pump here on Earth.”

The project has two parts aimed at two different objectives, the DIU solicitation says: “the ability to transfer fuel between disparate systems, and the ability to maneuver in order to provide access to the right fuel, at the right place and at the right time.”

A spokesperson told Breaking Defense that DIU — which is the Defense Department’s organization designed to speed emerging technology into the field — always aims to issue contracts within 60 to 90 days of receiving vendor responses.

Refueling Near GEO

For the first part of the effort, DIU is seeking to test out commercial providers that could fill up a satellite’s store of hydrazine (N2H4) rocket fuel using a “commercially available interface” that can be used with both commercial and government-owned spacecraft. The goal is to stage an on-orbit demonstration “within 18 to 24 months after contract award.”

Given DIU’s remit, it probably isn’t a surprise that a number of companies recently have debuted capabilities related to satellite servicing in GEO.

For example, Lockheed Martin just last week during the annual Space Foundation Space Symposium, made public its Mission Augmentation Port (MAP) interface standard based on the configuration of its own Augmentation System Port Interface (ASPIN).