Lawrence Livermore National Lab Enters A Different Kind Of Space Race With A Telescope Deal *

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Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory will have 13 months to develop a low-orbit telescope that will be part of a space mission expected to launch in 2027 to help select future moon landing sites, map mineral deposits, and eventually identify deep space threats to Earth.

The LLNL monolithic telescope project, in partnership with the Department of Defense and the private rocket company Firefly, joins an effort to reignite the United States' lunar exploration program – dormant for more than a generation – and compete in a rapidly growing space-exploration industry.

"The huge demand for space services is a whole new world, even compared to just 15 years ago,⁘ said Ben Bahney, LLNL's program lead.

⁘Even for a non-human space mission, this is a very aggressive schedule⁘ Fundamentally, the reason why we can build these monolithic telescopes so quickly is because all of the really hard engineering is done at the manufacturing point of the glass.⁘

LLNL will create a "monolithic telescope," a patented technology using a single piece of glass fused to telescopic mirrors, that will attach to Firefly's orbital vehicle known as Elytra Dark. Once operational, the Elytra Dark's "Ocula service" will provide a highly maneuverable telescope that can be used for Department of Defense missions and various commercial endeavors.

⁘Ocula will be one of the first ⁘ if not the first ⁘ commercial lunar imaging service on the market,⁘ Firefly Aerospace CEO Jason Kim said in a press release. ⁘This service will fill a void for our nation with advanced lunar imaging capabilities and a sustainable commercial business model."