Notice ID: 205e9f12595247f78a96091bec285f97Presolicitation
Specialized Real-Time Data Analysis and System Development for Advanced Propulsion Systems
Archived on March 21, 2026. Original response deadline: . Full description on SAM.gov.
Description
NASA/ George C. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has a requirement for Contract 80MSFC22DA006, “Specialized Real-Time Data Analysis and System Development for Advanced Propulsion Systems”, which supports George C. Marshall Space Flight Center’s (MSFC) responsibility for the development, management, and support of advanced launch vehicle and spacecraft propulsion systems, including those developed for the Human Lander System (HLS), Space Launch System (SLS) and Commercial Crew (CCP) programs. The Contractor shall support end-to-end development of dynamic environments from acquired test data by providing the necessary personnel, equipment support, supplies (not otherwise provided by the Government), and data management required for specialized data acquisition, data analysis and advanced real-time monitoring data system capability including software development, maintenance, and operation in support of propulsion system testing and environment development.
NASA/(MSFC) intends to issue a sole source contract to acquire these services from Optical Sciences Corporation. These activities are considered mission essential. An extension of 80MSFC22DA006 through 11/27 would retain highly experienced engineers/developers responsible for data acquisition and analysis, system administration, and support/maintenance of specialized data acquisition systems used in propulsion system testing, including waterflow tests of pumps, engine system and component tests, and field data acquisition of acoustics for static tests and flight. Continuity of this specialized support is expected to be critical to the success of planned projects expected to carry into FY27, including ones regarding pump testing for HLS risk reduction, HLS risk reduction activities for launch environments, engine technology development activities for acoustic environments, and activities regarding launch environments for the Artemis III mission.
The Government does not intend to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12.
Interested organizations may submit their capabilities and qualifications to perform the effort electronically via email to (Amanda A Reid and amanda.a.reid@nasa.gov) not later than 4:00 PM CST on March 6, 2026. Such capabilities/qualifications will be evaluated solely for the purpose of determining whether or not to conduct this acquisition on a competitive basis. A determination by the Government not to compete this acquisition on a full and open competition basis, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government.
NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at : https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/Procurement-Ombuds-Comp-Advocate-Listing.pdf
Overview
Agency:
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Office:NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER
Posted:February 12, 2026
NAICS:541715: Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology)
Last Updated:Aug 21, 2026
PSC:AR11: SPACE R&D SERVICES; SPACE FLIGHT, RESEARCH AND SUPPORTING ACTIVITIES; BASIC RESEARCH
Set-Aside:Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)
Type:Presolicitation
Place of Performance:Huntsville, Alabama, 35812
Award Overview
Possible prior contracts
Sign in to see possible prior contracts for this requirement (matched by agency, NAICS and place of performance; not confirmed).
Contacts
Contracting Officer
Primary Contact
Amanda A. Reid
Secondary Contact
JaKema Scruggs
Documents
No documents available.
Lifecycle
Solicitation:
80MSFC22DA006- Pre-Solicitation
Formal solicitation typically follows within 30–60 days. (estimate)
- Pre-SolicitationCurrentFeb 12, 2026
Specialized Real-Time Data Analysis and System Development for Advanced Propulsion Systems
Similar Opportunities
Title | Phase | Agency | NAICS | Set Aside | Posted | Deadline | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Please see the attached documents for details. QUOTES WILL NOT BE REVIEWED OR ACCEPTED. IF YOU FEEL YOUR COMPANY CAN PROVIDE THESE SERVICES, PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR CAPABILITY STATEMENT. | Special Notice | 541715 | No Set-Aside | 10/19/2026 | 10/22/2026 | Huntsville, AL | |
UPDATE: October 9, 2026 Directed Call (DC) #2 Surface Mating Systems (SMS) White Paper Questions and Responses and Model Contract added to Attachments/Links. DC #2 SMS White paper submissions are due by 5:00 p.m. CT on October 16, 2026. UPDATE: October 2, 2026 NASA is pleased to announce the release of Directed Call #2, Surface Mating Systems. The primary objective of this Directed Call is to design and develop new SMS concepts, culminating in a ground demonstration by September 30, 2027. Per Section 7 of the Directed Call, questions related to this call may be submitted until 5:00 p.m. CT on October 6, 2026. White paper submissions are due by 5:00 p.m. CT on October 16, 2026. UPDATE: August 14, 2026 The remaining Q&As have been added under the Attachments/Links tab along with associated updates to the Solicitation and Directed-Topic Call 1. Updates in the solicitation and Directed-Topic call are in red font. White paper submission date for Directed-Topic Call 1 is August 24, 2026. UPDATE: August 7, 2026 NASA is actively working to finalize and publish responses to all questions and comments submitted under the Appendix B solicitation and Direct-Topic Call 1. Due to the significant level of industry engagement, and to better support offerors, NASA will release these responses in batches as they are completed. The first batch of responses is now available in the Attachments section. Additionally, NASA is extending the white paper submission deadline from August 17, 2026, to August 24, 2026, to allow offerors sufficient time to incorporate the released responses into their submissions. UPDATE: July 16, 2026 The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, has been reissued as Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations and supersedes previous solicitation instructions. In December 2025, a national space policy was signed into place that emphasized America's leadership in space, including returning to the Moon, building a permanent base, investing in new technologies, and advancing lunar and orbital economies for future scientific missions. NASA’s Moon Base, located in the lunar South Pole region, will serve as the premier proving ground for deep space exploration, empowering scientific discovery and the development of advanced space technologies. Based on the preceding, Appendix B will now focus on phased implementation of Moon Base. NASA seeks to bridge the gap between technology development and mission operations, targeting concepts at technology readiness level (TRL) 6 and beyond. Industry partners play a critical role in addressing architectural gaps and risk reduction buy-down that create the knowledge foundation NASA needs to make informed programmatic decisions and strengthen its ability to achieve strategic exploration goals efficiently and effectively. To that end, NASA's Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate (HSMD) is actively embracing innovative ideas from industry partners through this Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations under the NextSTEP-3 Omnibus Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) that calls for industry-led demonstrations and special topic activities. This BAA uses a dual-path call structure: Directed-Topic Calls and Open-Topic Calls. NASA will periodically release specific Directed-Topic Calls to guide industry partners and promote focused innovation in support of Moon Base objectives. These Directed-Topic Calls are designed to address evolving mission needs and encourage proposals that advance technologies and capabilities critical to lunar exploration. NASA intends to also have Open-Topic Calls available at a later date to allow industry to propose concepts within the topics outlined above that are not part of any prior Directed-Topic Calls included within this announcement. Open opportunities are meant to capture innovative solutions from the broader industrial base and may result in a contract to any qualified organization. Open-Topic submissions with identical concepts as Directed-Topic Calls will not be evaluated. This announcement will follow a 2-step process for proposal submissions. Step-1 of the process is the submission of a White Paper. In Step-2 of the process, only invited proposers will be requested to submit a full project proposal. NASA intends to award Firm-Fixed Price contracts with performance-based milestone payments. All awards will be subject to the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS). All questions regarding this solicitation should be submitted in writing, electronically to Brad Vest, Contracting Officer, at Bradley.D.Vest@nasa.gov no later than 5:00 p.m., Central Time (CT), July 30, 2026. Offerors are encouraged to submit questions as soon as possible for consideration. The Offeror shall courtesy copy (cc) hq-nextstep3appb@mail.nasa.gov on this communication. ________________________________________________________________________ The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, is on hold until further notice. Offerors are responsible for monitoring this website for the reissuance of the solicitation and any subsequent amendments, if applicable. | Solicitation | 541715 | No Set-Aside | 10/09/2026 | 08/16/2026 | - | |
UPDATE: October 2, 2026 NASA is pleased to announce the release of Directed Call #2, Surface Mating Systems. The primary objective of this Directed Call is to design and develop new SMS concepts, culminating in a ground demonstration by September 30, 2027. Per Section 7 of the Directed Call, questions related to this call may be submitted until 5:00 p.m. CT on October 6, 2026. White paper submissions are due by 5:00 p.m. CT on October 16, 2026. UPDATE: August 14, 2026 The remaining Q&As have been added under the Attachments/Links tab along with associated updates to the Solicitation and Directed-Topic Call 1. Updates in the solicitation and Directed-Topic call are in red font. White paper submission date for Directed-Topic Call 1 is August 24, 2026. UPDATE: August 7, 2026 NASA is actively working to finalize and publish responses to all questions and comments submitted under the Appendix B solicitation and Direct-Topic Call 1. Due to the significant level of industry engagement, and to better support offerors, NASA will release these responses in batches as they are completed. The first batch of responses is now available in the Attachments section. Additionally, NASA is extending the white paper submission deadline from August 17, 2026, to August 24, 2026, to allow offerors sufficient time to incorporate the released responses into their submissions. UPDATE: July 16, 2026 The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, has been reissued as Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations and supersedes previous solicitation instructions. In December 2025, a national space policy was signed into place that emphasized America's leadership in space, including returning to the Moon, building a permanent base, investing in new technologies, and advancing lunar and orbital economies for future scientific missions. NASA’s Moon Base, located in the lunar South Pole region, will serve as the premier proving ground for deep space exploration, empowering scientific discovery and the development of advanced space technologies. Based on the preceding, Appendix B will now focus on phased implementation of Moon Base. NASA seeks to bridge the gap between technology development and mission operations, targeting concepts at technology readiness level (TRL) 6 and beyond. Industry partners play a critical role in addressing architectural gaps and risk reduction buy-down that create the knowledge foundation NASA needs to make informed programmatic decisions and strengthen its ability to achieve strategic exploration goals efficiently and effectively. To that end, NASA's Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate (HSMD) is actively embracing innovative ideas from industry partners through this Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations under the NextSTEP-3 Omnibus Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) that calls for industry-led demonstrations and special topic activities. This BAA uses a dual-path call structure: Directed-Topic Calls and Open-Topic Calls. NASA will periodically release specific Directed-Topic Calls to guide industry partners and promote focused innovation in support of Moon Base objectives. These Directed-Topic Calls are designed to address evolving mission needs and encourage proposals that advance technologies and capabilities critical to lunar exploration. NASA intends to also have Open-Topic Calls available at a later date to allow industry to propose concepts within the topics outlined above that are not part of any prior Directed-Topic Calls included within this announcement. Open opportunities are meant to capture innovative solutions from the broader industrial base and may result in a contract to any qualified organization. Open-Topic submissions with identical concepts as Directed-Topic Calls will not be evaluated. This announcement will follow a 2-step process for proposal submissions. Step-1 of the process is the submission of a White Paper. In Step-2 of the process, only invited proposers will be requested to submit a full project proposal. NASA intends to award Firm-Fixed Price contracts with performance-based milestone payments. All awards will be subject to the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS). All questions regarding this solicitation should be submitted in writing, electronically to Brad Vest, Contracting Officer, at Bradley.D.Vest@nasa.gov no later than 5:00 p.m., Central Time (CT), July 30, 2026. Offerors are encouraged to submit questions as soon as possible for consideration. The Offeror shall courtesy copy (cc) hq-nextstep3appb@mail.nasa.gov on this communication. ________________________________________________________________________ The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, is on hold until further notice. Offerors are responsible for monitoring this website for the reissuance of the solicitation and any subsequent amendments, if applicable. | Solicitation | 541715 | No Set-Aside | 10/02/2026 | 08/16/2026 | - | |
UPDATE: August 14, 2026 The remaining Q&As have been added under the Attachments/Links tab along with associated updates to the Solicitation and Directed-Topic Call 1. Updates in the solicitation and Directed-Topic call are in red font. White paper submission date for Directed-Topic Call 1 is August 24, 2026. UPDATE: August 7, 2026 NASA is actively working to finalize and publish responses to all questions and comments submitted under the Appendix B solicitation and Direct-Topic Call 1. Due to the significant level of industry engagement, and to better support offerors, NASA will release these responses in batches as they are completed. The first batch of responses is now available in the Attachments section. Additionally, NASA is extending the white paper submission deadline from August 17, 2026, to August 24, 2026, to allow offerors sufficient time to incorporate the released responses into their submissions. UPDATE: July 16, 2026 The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, has been reissued as Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations and supersedes previous solicitation instructions. In December 2025, a national space policy was signed into place that emphasized America's leadership in space, including returning to the Moon, building a permanent base, investing in new technologies, and advancing lunar and orbital economies for future scientific missions. NASA’s Moon Base, located in the lunar South Pole region, will serve as the premier proving ground for deep space exploration, empowering scientific discovery and the development of advanced space technologies. Based on the preceding, Appendix B will now focus on phased implementation of Moon Base. NASA seeks to bridge the gap between technology development and mission operations, targeting concepts at technology readiness level (TRL) 6 and beyond. Industry partners play a critical role in addressing architectural gaps and risk reduction buy-down that create the knowledge foundation NASA needs to make informed programmatic decisions and strengthen its ability to achieve strategic exploration goals efficiently and effectively. To that end, NASA's Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate (HSMD) is actively embracing innovative ideas from industry partners through this Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations under the NextSTEP-3 Omnibus Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) that calls for industry-led demonstrations and special topic activities. This BAA uses a dual-path call structure: Directed-Topic Calls and Open-Topic Calls. NASA will periodically release specific Directed-Topic Calls to guide industry partners and promote focused innovation in support of Moon Base objectives. These Directed-Topic Calls are designed to address evolving mission needs and encourage proposals that advance technologies and capabilities critical to lunar exploration. NASA intends to also have Open-Topic Calls available at a later date to allow industry to propose concepts within the topics outlined above that are not part of any prior Directed-Topic Calls included within this announcement. Open opportunities are meant to capture innovative solutions from the broader industrial base and may result in a contract to any qualified organization. Open-Topic submissions with identical concepts as Directed-Topic Calls will not be evaluated. This announcement will follow a 2-step process for proposal submissions. Step-1 of the process is the submission of a White Paper. In Step-2 of the process, only invited proposers will be requested to submit a full project proposal. NASA intends to award Firm-Fixed Price contracts with performance-based milestone payments. All awards will be subject to the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS). All questions regarding this solicitation should be submitted in writing, electronically to Brad Vest, Contracting Officer, at Bradley.D.Vest@nasa.gov no later than 5:00 p.m., Central Time (CT), July 30, 2026. Offerors are encouraged to submit questions as soon as possible for consideration. The Offeror shall courtesy copy (cc) hq-nextstep3appb@mail.nasa.gov on this communication. ________________________________________________________________________ The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, is on hold until further notice. Offerors are responsible for monitoring this website for the reissuance of the solicitation and any subsequent amendments, if applicable. | Solicitation | 541715 | No Set-Aside | 08/14/2026 | 08/24/2026 | - | |
UPDATE: August 7, 2026 NASA is actively working to finalize and publish responses to all questions and comments submitted under the Appendix B solicitation and Direct-Topic Call 1. Due to the significant level of industry engagement, and to better support offerors, NASA will release these responses in batches as they are completed. The first batch of responses is now available in the Attachments section. Additionally, NASA is extending the white paper submission deadline from August 17, 2026, to August 24, 2026, to allow offerors sufficient time to incorporate the released responses into their submissions. UPDATE: July 16, 2026 The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, has been reissued as Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations and supersedes previous solicitation instructions. In December 2025, a national space policy was signed into place that emphasized America's leadership in space, including returning to the Moon, building a permanent base, investing in new technologies, and advancing lunar and orbital economies for future scientific missions. NASA’s Moon Base, located in the lunar South Pole region, will serve as the premier proving ground for deep space exploration, empowering scientific discovery and the development of advanced space technologies. Based on the preceding, Appendix B will now focus on phased implementation of Moon Base. NASA seeks to bridge the gap between technology development and mission operations, targeting concepts at technology readiness level (TRL) 6 and beyond. Industry partners play a critical role in addressing architectural gaps and risk reduction buy-down that create the knowledge foundation NASA needs to make informed programmatic decisions and strengthen its ability to achieve strategic exploration goals efficiently and effectively. To that end, NASA's Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate (HSMD) is actively embracing innovative ideas from industry partners through this Appendix B: Moon Base Demonstrations under the NextSTEP-3 Omnibus Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) that calls for industry-led demonstrations and special topic activities. This BAA uses a dual-path call structure: Directed-Topic Calls and Open-Topic Calls. NASA will periodically release specific Directed-Topic Calls to guide industry partners and promote focused innovation in support of Moon Base objectives. These Directed-Topic Calls are designed to address evolving mission needs and encourage proposals that advance technologies and capabilities critical to lunar exploration. NASA intends to also have Open-Topic Calls available at a later date to allow industry to propose concepts within the topics outlined above that are not part of any prior Directed-Topic Calls included within this announcement. Open opportunities are meant to capture innovative solutions from the broader industrial base and may result in a contract to any qualified organization. Open-Topic submissions with identical concepts as Directed-Topic Calls will not be evaluated. This announcement will follow a 2-step process for proposal submissions. Step-1 of the process is the submission of a White Paper. In Step-2 of the process, only invited proposers will be requested to submit a full project proposal. NASA intends to award Firm-Fixed Price contracts with performance-based milestone payments. All awards will be subject to the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS). All questions regarding this solicitation should be submitted in writing, electronically to Brad Vest, Contracting Officer, at Bradley.D.Vest@nasa.gov no later than 5:00 p.m., Central Time (CT), July 30, 2026. Offerors are encouraged to submit questions as soon as possible for consideration. The Offeror shall courtesy copy (cc) hq-nextstep3appb@mail.nasa.gov on this communication. ________________________________________________________________________ The final solicitation for Next Space Technologies for Exploration Partnerships-3 (NextSTEP-3), Appendix B, Moon to Mars Architectural Studies, issued under solicitation number 80MSFC26R0003, is on hold until further notice. Offerors are responsible for monitoring this website for the reissuance of the solicitation and any subsequent amendments, if applicable. | Solicitation | 541715 | No Set-Aside | 08/07/2026 | 08/24/2026 | - |
Additional Details
Solicitation Number
80MSFC22DA006
Archive Date
Mar 21, 2026
Office Address
HUNTSVILLE, AL, 35812