AST SpaceMobile designs and manufactures satellites for its planned space-based cellular broadband network, which connects directly to standard, unmodified smartphones. Founded in Midland, Texas, in 2017, the company reports more than 500,000 square feet of manufacturing facilities and says its first commercial BlueBird satellites were built with 95% vertical integration at its Midland assembly, integration, and testing facilities. Its satellite network is being developed for commercial and government applications.
ArgotecFounded in Turin by David Avino in 2008, Argotec designs, builds and operates small satellites for Earth orbit and deep-space missions, while also developing human-spaceflight solutions and related space services. Its SpacePark headquarters in San Mauro Torinese is an in-house satellite factory spanning more than 11,000 square meters, with capacity for over 50 satellites a year. Argotec’s LICIACube and ArgoMoon missions carried its microsatellites into deep space, and its ISSpresso project brought the first coffee machine to the International Space Station.LARGO, MD
Hughes Network Systems, LLCHughes Network Systems, LLC, an EchoStar company headquartered in Germantown, Maryland, develops satellite communications and networking technology and provides connectivity services worldwide. Its manufacturing operation has more than 30 years of experience and reports producing over 10 million devices, including terminal and gateway-rack assemblies. The company also operates a large satellite broadband network and provides managed networking for enterprises and government agencies.GERMANTOWN, MD
Kongsberg NanoAvionicsBorn from the LituanicaSAT-1 mission in 2014, Kongsberg NanoAvionics builds small-satellite buses and provides end-to-end mission services, taking projects from spacecraft manufacturing through launch integration and in-orbit operations. The Kongsberg subsidiary has more than 60 satellites launched and over 300 in production, supported by a team of more than 220 qualified engineers across four manufacturing and office facilities in Europe and the United States. Its flight-proven platforms have supported communications, Earth observation and research missions, including the first satellite built for a 5G IoT constellation in low Earth orbit.COLLEGE PARK, MD
Rocket LabFounded in 2006 by engineer Sir Peter Beck, Rocket Lab is a Long Beach-headquartered space company that designs and manufactures rockets, spacecraft, satellite components and space systems while providing launch and on-orbit mission services. Its Electron small launch vehicle has delivered more than 200 satellites to orbit, while the company develops the reusable Neutron medium-lift rocket and operates launch sites in New Zealand and Virginia. Rocket Lab also manufactures space solar power systems in Albuquerque and spacecraft in an 11,000-square-foot Long Beach cleanroom, giving it an unusually vertically integrated path from mission design to orbit.SILVER SPRING, MD