Orbital Developing ESPA-Based Experiments Carrier

Officials at Orbital Sciences Corp. announce that the company is developing an experimental spacecraft platform that can host multiple payloads in various orbits under a $32 million contract awarded by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory.

The maneuverable platform is based on the Air Force-developed Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter (ESPA) ring, which enables the service’s workhorse Atlas 5 and Delta 4 rockets to carry multiple piggyback payloads. Orbital’s ESPA Augmented Geostationary Laboratory Experiment (EAGLE) Platform development contract runs through August 2017.

The low-cost EAGLE Platform will be able to operate in geosynchronous, geostationary-transfer or low Earth orbit, Orbital said in its press release. The platform is expected to host six payloads for at least one year in geosynchronous orbit, the company said.

“The customer’s initial design requirements were to be able to accommodate four payloads, but our innovative design allowed us to package all of the required equipment inside the ESPA ring, which opened up two additional ports, allowing for a total of six payloads to be flown,” Jean Floyd, Orbital’s senior vice president and deputy general manager for advanced programs, says in a statement. “By leveraging our flight-tested and reliable components, we delivered a system design that will provide our customer with exceptional value by exceeding their initial requirements.”

Edited from Space News.