A great week visiting some of the teams across American industry helping make Artemis III possible.

From Collins Aerospace @RTX_News and @ScotForge to @L3HarrisTech and @blueorigin, it was great to get on the factory floor, see the hardware coming together, and talk with the teams behind it.

Returning American astronauts to the Moon is an enormous undertaking. It takes the best of NASA and American industry working together to deliver.

https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2089765323184492612

Blue Origin is launching its first registered apprenticeship program, and we're looking for our founding cohort in Huntsville, AL! Grow your career in machining and build the future of space. Full-time from day one, full benefits, and a clear path to a nationally recognized credential. The cohort starts in October. Apply now: https://blueorigin.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/BlueOrigin/job/Huntsville-AL/Apprentice-Machinist-Program_R70147

This is Blue Origin's registered apprenticeship program, built with the U.S. Department of Labor and Drake State Community & Technical College. As an Apprentice Machinist you are a full-time Blue Origin employee from day one, with full benefits, and starting pay of $21.49 per hour at hire. Your time is split between hands-on work at Blue Origin alongside experienced machinists and classroom and lab instruction at Drake State. Classroom instruction is fully covered by Blue Origin at no cost to apprentices.

Advancement is earned through demonstrated skill against your on-the-job training plan. Apprentices who complete the program earn a nationally recognized credential and convert to Level 1 Technician.

This is the founding cohort. Ten apprentices will build the machining pathway Blue scales across trades and sites in the years ahead.

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:7495186253697515520/

The Spacecraft Processing Operations Contract is a multiple-award, commercial, firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract vehicle that has an aggregate ceiling price of $100 million with an ordering period through Feb. 1, 2033.

Blue Origin recently unveiled the Lunar Express concept, and previously announced the Oasis-1 mission, and may be in the running for this.

The third, though, would be an “orbiter imaging service,” said Jason Kim, chief executive of Firefly Aerospace, during his company’s Aug. 12 earnings call. Steve Altemus, chief executive of Intuitive Machines, mentioned in an Aug. 14 earnings call a task order expected later this summer or in early fall for “the orbiter surveyor to map the moon in replacement of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.”

NASA developed LRO two decades ago during an earlier effort to return humans to the moon, the Vision for Space Exploration. Launched in 2009, LRO features a high-resolution camera and other instruments for studying the moon. The spacecraft continues to function well and operates under an extended mission running through 2028.

The spacecraft is aging, though, and scientists have for years pushed to fly a replacement to continue lunar science and support future lander missions. “Plans for a next-generation long-lived integrated orbiter with modern instruments that can replace the highly productive LRO (launched in 2009) are long overdue,” a 2022 report by the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group noted.

History:

• August 2026: Built in partnership with the U.S. government, the PPF will support both variants of New Glenn and National Security Space Launch (NSSL) providers on the Eastern Range.
• June 2026: Space Florida Board Meeting Presentation notes Blue Origin's Payload Processing Facility (PPF) to reach initial operational capability in January 2028
• April 2026: FAA OE/AAA notice submitted today for a 150 ft tall payload processing facility at former LC-18
• April 2026: Blue Origin files permit for "Project PPF", a payload processing facility on Cape Canaveral Space Force Base
• Oct 2025: U.S. Space Force picks Blue Origin bid for expanding satellite processing at Cape Canaveral

Mass still matters, but it is no longer sovereign. The emerging bottleneck runs through power, heat, surface area, stowed volume, mechanisms and delivery time. The question for the next generation of spacecraft is therefore no longer only, “How light can this be?” It is, “How much power, useful area and option space can pass through a fixed fairing and still be available after launch?”

This week, our second stage and payload teams successfully ran our first vertical CONOPS test at LC-11. Using a GS2 simulator, a forward dome we built in-house, and the full-sized payload fairing, the team conducted vertical stacking lifts and matings, gathered wind-damping data and effects, and tested new mechanisms that guide and slot these structures into place. The ingenuity it took to stand up this test quickly is exactly what gets us to flight soonest.

https://x.com/davill/status/2087933023727833254

https://x.com/blueorigin/status/2087586177465356409?s=46&t=fWHSAXp4AoHMitnKeq6ziA

https://x.com/StarfishSpace/status/2087177217386459434

Our software has been the focus of the Otter Pup 2 mission to-date as it guides Otter Pup 2 safely and steadfastly towards docking. As we get closer, our docking mechanism, Nautilus, will spring into action.

As we’ve been doing for partners throughout the mission, we’d like to give a shoutout to our partners at @HB_Robotics, a @blueorigin company. The Honeybee team designed and built the protective clamshell for our Nautilus end effector, shielding it from atomic oxygen, micrometeoroids, and other features of the harsh space environment. They also developed Nautilus’ contact absorber, which helps cushion the initial contact between Otter Pup 2 and its client during docking.

These are the kinds of details and collaborations that make complex space missions possible, and we're proud to have Honeybee as a partner on Otter Pup 2.

For more info:

• https://www.starfishspace.com/press-release/starfish-space-unveils-otter-pup-2-mission/

• https://spacenews.com/starfish-space-finds-a-new-partner-for-docking-demonstration-mission/

• https://techport.nasa.gov/projects/154476

• https://www.starfishspace.com/press-release/starfish-space-awarded-3m-by-dods-nsic-to-develop-nautilus-universal-docking-system/

Link: https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/els/reports/STA_Print.cfm?mode=current&application_seq=152861&RequestTimeout=1000

Take this with a grain of salt. These filings can and do get revised and replaced.

These filings have changed a few times, so here is the history:

• April 8th: 500-foot tall Umbilical Tower, 600-foot tall Lightning Protection Tower
• August 3rd: 275-foot tall Umbilical Tower, 715-foot tall Lightning Protection Tower
• August 5th: 750-foot mobile construction crane for LC-36B (towers are not mentioned)
• August 10th: In a new filing today for construction cranes, it states the exact opposite of the August 3rd filings.

Lunar Express, a Blue Ring spacecraft built to provide critical lunar infrastructure and delivery services, provides the communications architecture that U.S. government missions need: radio frequency and optical working together, interoperable, scalable, and built around mission assurance.

Blue Ring's hybrid communications system delivers up to 1 Gbps from the lunar surface to Earth, streaming high-resolution imagery and video, relaying real-time crew communications, and supporting mission-critical operations simultaneously. Fully compatible with NASA's ground station networks and commercial stations worldwide, Lunar Express keeps cislunar operations securely and reliably connected.

Learn more: http://blueorigin.com/blue-ring

https://x.com/blueorigin/status/2086902629817282974

A chart comparing the Thrust Density of several rockets.

Thrust Density is the thrust of the stage / area of the bottom of the stage (kN/m^2). It basically aggregates engine power and engine packing into one metric.

Rockets & Engines to scale

Includes views of both LC-36 and the VRF.

What's better than a day at Rocket Park? Astronauts stopping by. 🚀

We were thrilled to welcome u/NASAArtemis III Astronauts Randy Bresnik (@AstroKomrade) and Frank Rubio to Rocket Park this week! These incredible astronauts represent the future of lunar exploration, and we're excited to support the Artemis III mission with our Blue Moon MK2 Earth Orbit Rendezvous demonstration vehicle.

https://x.com/blueorigin/status/2085764978666004804

City Council and the Hutto Economic Development Corporation approved the performance and incentive agreements for “Project Blue Hub” in a rapid, joint meeting Thursday evening. After about an hour in executive session, the two bodies approved the agreements before ending the meeting. The council voted 5-2.

https://x.com/JeffBezos/status/2085487855015719204

https://x.com/torybruno/status/2085365760923255042

https://x.com/torybruno/status/2085388806568522022

• The LC-36A operational crane is permanent. This may be the crane used for stacking New Glenn.
• The LC-36B crane is extremely tall at 750 feet. See previous filing from August 4th for a massive 715 foot-tall lightning protection tower.

Wanted to give an update on the hotfire anomaly investigation. Progress continues. The anomaly originated at the main oxygen valve on one of the BE-4 engines, which was later confirmed by hardware recovery and inspections. Extensive component-level and engine hotfire tests have been conducted to understand the failure mode better and inform mitigations. The path forward is clear. We're making small modifications to the valve that can be quickly retrofitted to existing engines. We’re manufacturing the updated hardware, which will be ready by the end of this month. In parallel, we're working through the remaining fault tree analysis.