Northrop Grumman Teams with Firefly Aerospace to Develop Antares Rocket Upgrade and New Medium Launch Vehicle
CHANDLER, Ariz., Aug. 8, 2022 (Northrop Grumman PR) – Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) and Firefly Aerospace have joined forces to provide an American-built first-stage upgrade for the Antares rocket and a new medium launch vehicle to serve commercial, civil and national security space launch markets.
“Through our collaboration, we will first develop a fully domestic version of our Antares rocket, the Antares 330, for Cygnus space station commercial resupply services, followed by an entirely new medium class launch vehicle,” said Scott Lehr, vice president and general manager, launch and missile defense systems, Northrop Grumman. “Northrop Grumman and Firefly have been working on a combined strategy and technical development plan to meet current and future launch requirements.”
Firefly’s propulsion technology utilizes the same propellants as the current Antares rocket, which minimizes launch site upgrades. The Antares 330 will utilize seven of Firefly’s Miranda engines and leverage its composites technology for the first stage structures and tanks, while Northrop Grumman provides its proven avionics and software, upper-stage structures and Castor 30XL motor, as well as proven vehicle integration and launch pad operations. This new stage will also significantly increase Antares mass to orbit capability.
“Firefly prides itself on being a disrupter in the new space industry and collaborating with a proven space pioneer like Northrop Grumman will help us continue that disruption,” said Peter Schumacher, interim CEO, Firefly.
The Antares 330 performance upgrade will enable Northrop Grumman to continue to support the company’s current contracts while planning for future mission capabilities.
Firefly Aerospace is an emerging end-to-end space transportation company focused on developing a family of launch vehicles, in-space vehicles, and services to provide industry-leading affordability, convenience, and reliability to its government and commercial customers. Firefly’s launch vehicles, combined with their in-space vehicles, such as the Space Utility Vehicle (SUV) and Blue Ghost Lunar Lander, provide the space industry with a single source for missions from LEO to the surface of the Moon and beyond.
Northrop Grumman is a technology company, focused on global security and human discovery. Our pioneering solutions equip our customers with capabilities they need to connect, advance and protect the U.S. and its allies. Driven by a shared purpose to solve our customers’ toughest problems, our 90,000 employees define possible every day.
23 responses to “Northrop Grumman Teams with Firefly Aerospace to Develop Antares Rocket Upgrade and New Medium Launch Vehicle”
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This will be interesting to watch. Lots of work to be done and not a lot of time, or the option of using Atlas this time around. I’m sure Vulcan will be an option if it is indeed an option. I wonder what Firefly really has to offer to NG to make this process go forward. The Firefly and Reaver engines are sized all wrong for this mission so not so sure what there is to offer here, other than Reaver’s power tap for the turbo pump.
NG Has already booked a few F9 launches to fill In in the meantime…
Oh interesting, will they fly Cygnus on Falcon or did they order a full Dragon/Falcon package?
As I understand it, it will be a cygnus.
Coooooooollllll Glad to see interoperability happen in the program. Nice!
Yes, once again SpaceX’s good old trampoline is coming to the rescue of NASA and the ISS…
BTW last night’s Falcon 9 launch was the 164th successful launch out of 166 attempts and marks the launch of 3,000 Starlink satellites so far. With 5 more launches planned for August that number will rapidly increase and implies that SpaceX is mass producing around 10 satellites a day.
By the end of the year SpaceX will have launched more satellites than all the nations of the Earth combined did in the first 60 years (1957-2017) of the Space Age.
In many ways Space X has become America’s launch provider. They’ve done a great job.
Yes. Also BN7 was fixed and is on the pad again doing static fire tests. SpaceX is hoping to do an orbital launch attempt with it at the end of the month, within a couple days of NASA’s schedule launch of the SLS. Exciting times!
For all the setbacks and delays on the huge rockets the medium lift rockets have been flying just fine. A real rocket summer with 80’s Soviet launch rates. It’s really been an outstanding year for space. Us old farts get to see what we would have enjoyed had STS worked out. I don’t think I’m ever going to become too blase about rockets going up and landing. When Atlas goes up, I have a real sense of disappointment it won’t be landing.
There’s a typo in your last comment.
Fixed. Thanks!
At the same time it is a bit concerning that the interoperability is only one way. No one else has a vehicle to offer a Dragon a ride if the need arises. It doesn’t seem like the need will arise, but I carry a spare tire for a reason. (the one in the truck, quit calling me fat:-)
Yes, SpaceX has left the rest of the industry in its dust. Hopefully the New Glenn and the Vulcan fly soon and are able replace the old legacy launch vehicles with something newer.
Agreed but at least we have this. If SS/SH does not work out, I imagine Dragon/Vulcan will eventually be tested, but once SS/SH is operating, everything is going to get really big and pretty cheap. Rules will change.
I am torn between my prejudice that high flight rate vehicles are best way forward and that huge may not be the best way to get there. And that The people actually doing it have skin in the game and far more information than I have.
I think they are best achieved by relatively conservative designs in terms of size and existing facilities. Expanding service to Wallops and Kodiak might be simpler with more modest machines that don’t set off so many alarms.
Personal prejudices that a Raptor based 9+1 layout could be cheaper to operate than Falcon with at least double the payload. Retire the unknowns with methane engines and stainless construction While in revenue service. IMO the Starship combo would develop smoother with that operational knowledge in the tank.
If proven wrong in events coming up, I like my crow barbecue style.
Ahh, but which style BBQ? Here is a good reference:
https://www.youtube.com/wat…
Memphis style from the choices mentioned.
I don’t think you’re wrong. I fully expect it will require the Musk forcing function to drag the market to big payloads.
That is also an area of concern. The Musk forcing function has to operate in a fairly short timeframe to make the business viable. If it takes a decade to ramp up it could get ugly financially.
Unless of course the Starship combo is actually cheaper to operate than the Falcons. That I don’t see it could be myopia. It’s just a lot of ship, and GSE construction, and regulatory requirements in several directions. That’s a lot of investment even after proving out the flight hardware.
Hopefully my concerns make me a laughingstock in the fairly near future.
Yes, booked three flights on the Falcon 9 in order to fill their contract for Cygnus flights with NASA.
NG is desperate now that it’s supply of engines is cut off and has few options other than hope that Firefly delivers for it.
It’s a real lifeline to Firefly. Congrats to them.
Yes, it’s their opportunity to move forward with a deep pockets partner who needs them and I hope they are successful.