Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
NASA has issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) seeking industry collaboration to develop a Mars Telecommunications Network for reliable, high-bandwidth communications. This network is designed to relay science data, high-definition imagery, and critical information during Mars missions.
The network will utilize high-performance telecommunications orbiters at Mars to support future surface, orbital, and human exploration. NASA aims for the network to be operational on the Red Planet by 2030.
This RFP builds upon a draft released earlier in April and feedback from an industry day at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, where commercial partners provided input on NASA's objectives. The request seeks solutions for current and future missions, including accommodation for a science payload selected by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
The Mars Telecommunications Network supports NASA’s developing space architecture, extending continuous network services from Earth to the Moon and Mars. It is part of the agency’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Program’s Moon to Mars strategy. The initiative is funded through the Working Families Tax Cut Act.