"PATHFINDER TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATOR" (PTD) Mission Extension
NASA · NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
Capture briefs (a one-page, shareable copy of this page) are part of Pro. The CSV here holds the notice, its timeline and past awards.
Where this opportunity stands
Every notice posted under solicitation 80ARC025PA001 in this department, oldest first.
- Dec 16, 2024 · this noticeSpecial Notice
- Dec 19, 2024Special NoticeOpen
- Feb 27, 2025Award NoticeTyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, Inc. · $1.8MOpen
- Feb 27, 2025Justification (Sole Source)Open
Next steps for this stage
Standard steps for the notice type; not advice about this buyer.
- Answer the notice: this is when the requirement can still be shaped.
- Contact the contracting officer named on the notice.
- Check who won similar work; they are the likely bidders.
What the notice says
NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) has a requirement for: Extended Mission Operations for the Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator (PTD) Missions, including PTD-R and PTD-4. Description of Required Items and Services: PTD-R Extended Mission Operations Extend mission operations from the end of the baseline PTD-R mission to spacecraft demise, estimated in January 2027. Tasks include mission operations, flight product generation, real-time operations, fault management, anomaly resolution, and payload characterization. Provide necessary Mission Operations Control facilities, Ground Data System (GDS) in… (show all)
tegration, and command load simulations. Ensure telemetry and payload data are accessible to NASA and/or the Payload Principal Investigator. Deliver an end-of-mission briefing with objectives, metrics, and lessons learned. PTD-4 Extended Mission Operations Extend mission operations for PTD-4 by two months, from December 31, 2024, to February 28, 2025. Support the Alt Energy Experiment, including developing and executing scripts and command loads for spacecraft and payload operations. Conduct nominal imaging operations and periodic on-orbit evaluations. Deliver an end-of-mission briefing summarizing mission accomplishments. Software and Ground System Support Develop and validate flight software (FSW) updates, GNC software changes, and related testing for PTD-R mission requirements. Provide ongoing support for fault detection, isolation, and recovery procedures. Recurring Deliverables Kick-off meeting materials. Bi-weekly status updates. Updated Mission Operations Plans. Extended mission data, including telemetry, imaging data, and GNC data, delivered with less than three days of latency. Quantities and Units of Measure: PTD-R Mission Operations: Extend from ATP (estimated December 15, 2024) through spacecraft demise (estimated January 2027). PTD-4 Mission Operations: Extend by two months, from December 31, 2024, to February 28, 2025. Software updates and ground system support: As needed throughout the mission. Data deliverables: Provided for each operational pass, with telemetry latency < 3 days. Location of Performance: Contractor facilities in Irvine, California. Security Classification: Unclassified. Period of Performance: PTD-R: From ATP (December 15, 2024, estimated) to January 2027, plus one additional month for final reporting. PTD-4: From ATP (December 15, 2024, estimated) to February 28, 2025. NASA/ARC intends to issue a sole source contract to acquire the Extended Mission Operations for the PTD Missions, including PTD-R and PTD-4, from Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, Inc. (d/b/a Terran Orbital), under the authority of FAR 13.5, Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items. The justification for this sole source acquisition is based on the criteria that only one responsible source can satisfy agency requirements (as per FAR 6.302-1(a)(2)), with the documentation and approval processes following the requirements in FAR 13.501. The justification for lack of competition is as follows: Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, Inc. is the original designer, developer, and operator of the Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator spacecraft under contract NNA17BF41C. The required mission operations, ground system compatibility, and software support are integral to the continued operations of PTD-R and PTD-4. Tyvak possesses unique proprietary knowledge, technical expertise, and facilities necessary to fulfill these requirements. Transitioning these operations to another provider would result in significant duplication of costs and unacceptable delays to NASA�s mission objectives, consistent with FAR 6.302-1(a)(2). The Government does intend to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12. Interested organizations may submit their capabilities and qualifications to perform the effort electronically via email to Tiffany N. Goodwin (Tiffany.N.Goodwin@nasa.gov) and Joshua D. Taggart (Joshua.D.Taggart@nasa.gov). Seven days after posting. The Statement of Work (SOW) for this acquisition can be requested through the Contracting Officer/Contract Specialist. Such capabilities/qualifications will be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this acquisition on a competitive basis. A determination by the Government not to compete this acquisition on a full and open competition basis, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government. NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at : https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/Procurement-Ombuds-Comp-Advocate-Listing.pdf
Who won similar work
28 award notices on SAM.gov in the last 24 months. Matched by: Same agency (NASA), same NAICS 541715.
Single-winner award sizes (28): middle half $1.1M to $62.9M, median $3.1M; range $26K to $1.8B.
| Winner | Awards | Value | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| ASCEND AEROSPACE AND TECHNOLOGY, LLC | 1 | $1.8B | Sep 10, 2025 |
| BASTION TECHNOIOGIES INC | 1 | $488.0M | Dec 16, 2025 |
| BARRIOS TECHNOLOGY, LLC | 1 | $450.5M | Aug 14, 2025 |
| ARES TECHNICAL SERVICES CORPORATION | 1 | $400.0M | Aug 7, 2026 |
| SIERRA LOBO INC | 1 | $266.0M | Apr 24, 2026 |
| TROY SIERRA JV LLC | 1 | $220.5M | Sep 30, 2025 |
| New Rights Group, Inc. | 1 | $75.9M | May 4, 2026 |
| MILLENNIUM ENGINEERING AND INTEGRATION SERVICES, LLC | 1 | $58.6M | Apr 6, 2026 |
| University of Wisconsin System Madison WI 53715 USA | 1 | $24.0M | Sep 8, 2025 |
| THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO Boulder CO 80309 USA | 1 | $15.0M | Jul 8, 2025 |
Value counts new single-winner awards. "Shared" awards are multiple-award contracts that list every winner with the same total ceiling (same contract, or the same office, day and amount); that ceiling is not one company's win, so it is not added in. Contract modifications are not new awards and are not added in either. Notices whose amount is a placeholder such as $999,999,999 are not added in. Revenue next to a ticker is the company's revenue over the latest 12 months in its SEC filings.
- Aug 7, 2026ARES TECHNICAL SERVICES CORPORATION$400.0MConsolidated Program Support Services Program Planning & Control II (CPSS PP&C II)No listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- May 4, 2026New Rights Group, Inc.$75.9MNEXT GENERATION SCALABLE DATA ENGINEERING, OPERATIONS, AND INFORMATICS SUPPORT FOR OPEN SCIENCE (NEXT GEN)No listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Apr 24, 2026SIERRA LOBO INC$266.0MTest Evaluation and Support Team 3 (TEST3) Period of Performance ExtensionNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Apr 6, 2026MILLENNIUM ENGINEERING AND INTEGRATION SERVICES, LLC$58.6MProject and Engineering Support Services II (PESS II) ExtensionNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Dec 16, 2025BASTION TECHNOIOGIES INC$488.0MSafety and Mission Assurance Services (SMAS) IINo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Sep 30, 2025TROY SIERRA JV LLC$220.5MAward of Test Facility Operations, Maintenance, and Engineering III (TFOME III)No listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Sep 29, 2025General Electric Company$340K4H-SiC Silicon Carbide (SiC) Integrated Circuit Processing on 100 mm Diameter SiC WafersMateriality: <0.01% of $GE revenue (Low) SEC
- Sep 29, 2025UNIVERSITY OF UTAH Salt Lake City UT 84112 USA$580KThe Development of Diffractive Filter Array (DFA) for Hyperspectral Diffractive Imaging Spectrometer (DRISM) ApplicationNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Sep 16, 2025JACKSON BOND ENTERPRISES, LLC$970K10m Pathfinder FTPSNo listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
- Sep 10, 2025ASCEND AEROSPACE AND TECHNOLOGY, LLC$1.8BContract for Organizing Spaceflight Mission Operations and Systems (COSMOS)No listed company matched (Materiality N/A)
Materiality: one award's value as a share of the winner's revenue over the latest 12 months in its SEC filings (or its last fiscal year, as noted when you point at it). Low under 1%, Medium 1 to 5%, High 5% or more. Many awards are paid over several years, so this overstates a single year's share.
Competitive landscape
For the 8 most frequent past winners above. Lobbying is matched by the company's exact name or exact ticker; agencies are as named on the filings.
- 0 of these past winners lobbied Natl Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) since 2024 (0 filings)
- 0 of their lobbyists list a past Natl Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) job
- No corporate PAC money from them to the overseeing committees since 2024
- 0 foreign-agent (FARA) registrations
Policy around it
Bills the past winners named while lobbying this agency's issues, rules from the department, and executive orders that name the agency, last 12 months.
- 0 bills named on the past winners' lobbying filings
- 16 rules from the department in the last 12 months
- 0 executive orders naming the agency in the last 12 months
Market
For past winners matched exactly to a listed company. Insider trades are open-market buys and sells (Form 4) in the last 90 days, shown as facts; our own study found insiders do not reliably buy ahead of awards. A sale marked 10b5-1 was made under a trading plan set up in advance.
- 0 of the past winners are listed companies
- 0 insider buys and 0 insider sells at them in the last 90 days
Sources: SAM.gov notices and award notices; Senate LDA lobbying filings; FEC filings; FARA; Federal Register; congress.gov; SEC Form 4. Every row above links to its record.
Companies are matched to tickers by exact name, including the subsidiaries a company lists in its SEC filings. A company we could not match shows no market rows; that is a miss, not a finding.