From out-of-this-world technologies that help us research and explore space, to state-of-the-art innovations that improve life on Earth, small businesses make an impact through the NASA SBIR/STTR program. This blog features perspectives from program participants, including small businesses and research institutions, as well as other materials to help guide you on your SBIR/STTR journey.
We update regularly, so be on the lookout for new resources and insight to support you!
The Small Businesses Behind CAPSTONE Are Paving Our Path to the MoonPosted 6/7/2022 The upcoming Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE) mission will be the first spacecraft to fly a unique orbit around the Moon that will be used for Gateway, NASA’s future Moon-orbiting outpost. Multiple partner businesses contribute to CAPSTONE with support from NASA's small business programs, and many of those partners got their start with support from NASA. |  |
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Small Business Gets an Assist from NASA Problem SolversPosted 5/4/2022
Space Foundry Inc. recently boarded a parabolic flight with its plasma jet printer, a technology intended to create electronic components in space. The initial microgravity flight attempt occurred over the Gulf of Mexico aboard a modified Boeing 727. After the aircraft achieved microgravity, the company’s plasma jet printer failed to perform properly. Before going airborne again, the company decided to consult members of NASA’s Exploration Research and Technology (ER&T) and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs. |
Impact Story: Roll-Out Solar ArraysPosted 4/7/2022 NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) highlighted Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA) technology from Redwire Space, originally developed by Deployable Space Systems (DSS) with support from multiple NASA programs, including SBIR/STTR. Since 2009, STMD has funded parts of DSS’s journey, from conceptualizing the technology to its development, culminating in successful technology demonstrations, operational mission use, and other cutting-edge potential applications. |  |
 | STTR Success: HBCU Research Capabilities Help Bring 3D Electronics Printing to the MarketplacePosted 2/22/2022
Morningbird Media Corporation in Huntsville, Alabama, is responsible for the Electronic Alchemy eForge, a 3D electronics printer designed to help NASA support long-duration missions. The eForge was created by Morningbird Media in partnership with NASA and Alabama A&M University (AAMU), a historically Black college or university (HBCU), through the STTR program. |
Q&A with Freedom Photonics: Growing Government Relationships and Technology Capabilities with the NASA SBIR/STTR ProgramPosted 1/26/2022 Dr. Milan Mashanovitch, CEO and co-founder of Freedom Photonics LLC in Santa Barbara, California, has worked with the program since 2014, and his company has achieved commercial success with technology developed through the program. He shared with us how Freedom Photonics began its partnership with NASA by developing and improving technologies through SBIR awards. |  |
 | NASA Releases 2022 Spinoff PublicationPosted 1/24/2022
The 2022 Spinoff publication by NASA’s Technology Transfer Program is out now! Spinoff highlights NASA technologies that benefit life on Earth in the form of commercial products. In this issue, you can find several SBIR/STTR-derived technologies:
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