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About SSCO

The Satellite Servicing Capabilities Office (SSCO) was established in 2009 to continue NASA's 30-year legacy of satellite servicing and repair. Building upon twenty years' experience servicing the Hubble Space Telescope, SSCO exists to:

  1. Advance the state of robotic servicing technology to enable the routine servicing of satellites that were not designed with servicing in mind.
  2. Position the U.S. to be the global leader in in-space repair, maintenance and satellite disposal.
  3. Help to enable a future U.S. industry for the servicing of satellites.

SSCO Milestones

  • On-Orbit Satellite Servicing Study, 2009-2010
  • International Workshop on On-Orbit Satellite Servicing, 2010
  • Satellite Servicing Technology Development Campaign
    • Robotic Refueling Mission: International Space Station experiment to test robotic refueling technology, tools and techniques, 2011-2013
    • Argon: autonomous rendezvous and docking technology development campaign, 2011-2012
  • Robotic Servicing Mission: notional servicing mission for satellites in geosynchronous Earth orbit

"NASA should study the benefits of designing spacecraft intended to operate around Earth or the Moon, or at the libration points for human and robotic servicing."

- National Research Council's Report ('08)