LOS ANGELES, Jan. 19, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TransAstra Corporation, a leading provider of cutting-edge telescope and orbital logistics technology, announced today that the company has been awarded two Direct-to-Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards from the Department of Defense (DoD). In addition to a NASA Phase 1 SBIR and a U.S. Space Force Phase 1 SBIR award received in December, the latest awards—each worth $1.25 million—focus on the company's SutterTM telescope technology for space domain awareness and tracking spacecraft.
One of the DoD awards will be used to adapt TransAstra's Optimized Matched Filter Tracking (OMFT) technology for use in existing telescopes in space. The second award will be used to mature the software and approaches to full operational readiness in ground-based telescopes. TransAstra will also upgrade the operational maturity of TransAstra's two existing compound telescope systems.
Additionally, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has notified TransAstra that it will issue the company six new patents in the coming weeks; the newly allowed claims broadly cover topics ranging from the company's Apis asteroid mining architecture to OMFT telescope technology and a new method of sintering bricks.
"We are thrilled to make these announcements," said Joel Sercel, CEO of TransAstra. "These awards and patents are a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team, and we're excited to begin the technical development to bring our innovative telescope technology to the world."
Sercel continued, "We are particularly excited about the opportunities to adapt our OMFT technology for use in existing space telescopes and to mature the software and approaches to full operational readiness in ground-based telescopes for space domain awareness and tracking spacecraft. These developments will greatly enhance our ability to view objects and spacecraft throughout cislunar space."
In addition to these recent awards, TransAstra has several proposals pending with various government agencies; these proposals include projects for orbital debris cleanup, in-space telescopes, and orbital logistics.
About TransAstra Founded in 2015, TransAstra (TransAstra.com) is a U.S. orbital logistics and space mining company advancing the industrialization and settlement of space through the sustainable and ethical development of critical, dual-use space infrastructure technologies powered by the resources of space and the energy of the sun. The 2021 Y-Combinator alum, which is headquartered in Los Angeles, has been issued 8 patents and has more than 12 additional patents pending.
