COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to release a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for Project NEXUS, a Ka-band backward-compatible relay system. The solicitation seeks industry partners to develop and demonstrate an end-to-end Ka-band relay service, including space, ground, launch, integration, and operations elements, that will maintain compatibility with legacy Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRS) users for at least 15 years.
NASA’s objective is to preserve continuity for on-orbit missions that cannot modify flight hardware or transition to non-compatible commercial services, addressing growing continuity risks in the 2029–2031 timeframe. The BAA will be a phased, competitive research and development (R&D) acquisition with multiple initial firm-fixed-price awards, followed by progressive downselects based on performance, technical credibility, and commercial viability. NASA expects proposed solutions to support broader commercial markets beyond its own missions.
NEXUS objectives
The NEXUS demonstration will validate key objectives, including: preserving backward compatibility with TDRS Ka-band spectral ranges; delivering operationally viable bidirectional relay services with at least two concurrent paired forward and return links during the demonstration; verifying coverage and performance; and generating data to inform a follow-on competitive service acquisition.
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The full-service architecture will eventually support eight concurrently operational paired links across defined regional coverage zones, with continuous global service between customer control centers and supported vehicles.
Phase 1 (6 months) will mature proposed concepts and development plans, with awards anticipated by September 2026. Phase 2 (15 months) will develop and integrate the space and ground segments, with downselects expected by February 2027. Phase 3 (6 months) will conduct on-orbit demonstration and end-to-end verification, with demonstration NLT June 2028. Phase 4 will transition demonstrated capabilities into commercial services, while Phase 5 will involve competitive long-term operational service acquisitions.
The NEXUS system must preserve TDRS-equivalent signal and link performance, including frequency range, gain flatness, phase linearity, polarization, carrier-to-noise ratio, and latency, while providing secure, cyber-resilient operations across space, ground, and network segments. Proposed solutions must include relay satellite antennas capable of precise pointing, rapid repointing, and dynamic collision avoidance.
NASA anticipates releasing a draft solicitation on 10 April 2026, followed by an industry day on 14 April at the Catalyst Campus for Technology and Innovation in Colorado Springs, and optional one-on-one meetings on 14–15 April. The final BAA solicitation is expected on 11 May 2026, with proposals due 2 June. Participation in site visits or one-on-one meetings is voluntary, and all work will comply with ITAR-controlled technical data requirements.
The agency named Jennifer George as the primary point of contact for this notice. They can be reached via email at [email protected]. More information is available at https://sam.gov/workspace/contract/opp/a9441da4747d470fb7f1cf5e65c1be14/view
