CLEVELAND - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Glenn Research Center in Cleveland announced plans to issue a new solicitation under the Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnership Broad Agency Announcement to accelerate development of key lunar and cislunar technologies for future Moon missions.
The planned solicitation, called the Lunar Enabling Infrastructure Accelerator (LEIA) Appendix A, will be issued on behalf of NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. The effort seeks industry proposals to mature and demonstrate technologies considered critical for sustained lunar operations and cislunar infrastructure.
Technology areas identified in the notice include vertical solar arrays, in-situ resource utilization oxygen production systems, Stirling radioisotope generators, in-space manufacturing, and advanced nanomaterials production. NASA says the technologies require additional risk reduction and ground demonstrations to advance to Technology Readiness Levels 5 through 6.
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The agency says the solicitation is intended to support the development of systems needed for future Moon Base concepts and near-term lunar mission architectures. NASA is emphasizing the role of U.S. industry in designing, developing, testing, and evaluating competing technology solutions for lunar surface and cislunar operations.
The solicitation will use NAICS code 541715 for research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences, with a size standard of 1,000 employees.
NASA anticipates releasing a draft Broad Agency Announcement in June 2026, followed by a final release in August 2026. Proposals are expected to be due in September 2026, although the dates remain tentative.
NASA Glenn Research Center also plans to hold an industry day, though scheduling details have not yet been announced.
The technologies identified in the planned solicitation are closely tied to several aerospace electronics and power-generation disciplines, including space-based power systems, autonomous resource extraction and processing, advanced materials engineering, and in-space manufacturing systems designed to reduce logistics demands for long-duration lunar missions.
Prospective offerors are encouraged to notify NASA of their intent to submit an offer by 3 June 2026 at 5:00 p.m. EDT. The agency named Linda Nabors as the primary point of contact for this pre-solicitation notice. They can be reached via email at [email protected]. More information is available at https://sam.gov/workspace/contract/opp/69e9582d4829482e8b31bca8cd448973/view.
