May One Day Be Used To Build Large Structures In Space

Engineers will test several components of the Commercial Infrastructure for Robotic Assembly and Services (CIRAS) project at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia that may one day be used to build large space structures.

Testing will be conducted on the Tension Actuated in Space MANipulator (TALISMAN) robotic arm, including a demonstration of the deployment of a solar array and the Strut Assembly, Manufacturing, Utility & Robotic Aid (SAMURAI), and NASA Intelligent Jigging and Assembly Robot (NINJAR) autonomous truss building.

TALISMAN, SAMURAI, and NINJAR are components of CIRAS, part of the In-Space Robotic Manufacturing and Assembly project portfolio, managed by NASA's Technology Demonstration Missions Program and sponsored by NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate.

These are the final demonstrations in the first phase of the project. The project, aimed at advancing technologies to be able to autonomously construct large platforms in space, is being conducted in collaboration with industry partners. The CIRAS team includes prime contractor Northrop Grumman of Falls Church, Virginia, supported by its wholly-owned subsidiary, Space Logistics, LLC; along with Langley; NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio; NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C.

(Source: NASA news release. Image provided)

FMI: www.nasa.gov/spacetech