Goddard Engineering and Technology Directorate

Commercial Space: NASA Has an App for That

The next space station NASA builds with international partners, the lunar Gateway, will use an agency-developed open-source code to run many of its systems. Commercial space companies are also using the code along with apps developed by Red Canyon to operate planetary landers, satellites, and more.
The next space station NASA builds with international partners, the lunar Gateway, will use an agency-developed open-source code to run many of its systems. Commercial space companies are also using the code along with apps developed by Red Canyon to operate planetary landers, satellites, and more.

Software two decades in the making helps private space save time, money

Research balloons, satellites, and planetary landers may have little in common, but NASA has written a program that can help operate all these craft and more. This open-source software framework, called core Flight System (cFS), is similar to a smartphone operating system in that it serves as the foundation for apps developed to perform spaceflight functions. Now, Red Canyon Software Inc. is building those apps using cFS to help commercial space companies get into low-Earth orbit and beyond as quickly as possible.

NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, developed cFS to meet the needs of diverse missions ranging from high-altitude balloons to lunar-orbiting spacecraft. Agency engineers collaborated to identify the most common requirements for NASA flights, according to David McComas, former Software Engineering Division senior flight systems engineer. Now retired, he’s still involved with the user groups developing and maintaining cFS code and standards.

Because flight computer platforms vary significantly, the open-source code can be transferred across diverse types of hardware. That means apps don’t need a platform-specific interface, so they can be reused for different crafts and missions.

“Companies using cFS can start with less capital for flight software development costs and get to space quicker, achieving a quicker return on investment,” said Barry Hamilton, CEO of Denver-based Red Canyon. The space technology company has been able to expand into commercial space, which now accounts for 20% of its business, by using cFS to support entrepreneurs and established companies.

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