The recipient proposes a mission concept for a 100M assembled ultra-light starshade for exoplanet discovery and characterization that leverages dissipative metamaterials/phononic crystals and…
Ended Cooperative Agreement Awarded Last action
- Contract number
- 80NSSC25M0018
- Awardee
-
University Of Texas At Austin UEI V6AFQPN18437
- Awarding agency
-
Shared Services Center
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Obligated
- $41,646
Award facts
- Contract value 100% obligated
- $41,646.00 Current and potential, with all options
- Completion date 100% complete
- Current and potential, with all options
- NAICS code
- Not on record
- PSC
- AJ11 General Science And Technology R&D Services; General Science And Technology; Basic Research
- Set-aside
- No set-aside
- Competition
- Not Competed Basic Research
- Pricing
- Other
- Place of performance
- Austin, TX 78712, USA
Award details come from SAM.gov/FPDS.
About this award
This is a $41,646 Cooperative Agreement awarded by the Shared Services Center, a civilian federal agency, to the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin). The award funds the development of a 100-meter ultra-light starshade structure designed to work in tandem with large ground-based telescopes to enable exoplanet discovery and characterization. The starshade leverages dissipative metamaterials, phononic crystals, and creased plate theory to achieve increased damping, stiffness, and precision while dramatically reducing structural mass. This work can provide a pathway towards 20-meter class ground-based observatories in the next two decades and serve as an alternative approach to smaller starshades for use with space-based observatories. The award does not utilize any set-aside designations, indicating UT Austin's competitive capabilities in securing federal research and development contracts across aerospace and scientific domains.
Description
The recipient proposes a mission concept for a 100M assembled ultra-light starshade for exoplanet discovery and characterization that leverages dissipative metamaterials/phononic crystals and creased plate theory to achieve increased damping, stiffness, and precision with dramatically decreased structural mass. This structure will be designed to work in tandem with large ground-based telescopes as a viable path towards observatories with >20M apertures in the next two decades, but can also provide an alternative technical path to smaller starshades to work with HWO.
Quick answers
Who was awarded contract 80NSSC25M0018?
80NSSC25M0018 was awarded to University Of Texas At Austin by Shared Services Center (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) on June 10, 2025.
How much is contract 80NSSC25M0018 worth?
The government has obligated $41,646 on 80NSSC25M0018.
Was contract 80NSSC25M0018 competed?
The extent of competition for 80NSSC25M0018 was not competed.
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