By Jonathan O’Callaghan | New York Times
AstroForge is betting on things being different this time around. The California company has already launched a demonstration spacecraft into Earth orbit and raised $55 million in funding. Now the company is set to actually travel toward a near-Earth asteroid in deep space.
AstroForge’s second robotic spacecraft, called Odin, is bundled into a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will also launch a privately built moon lander and a NASA-operated lunar orbiter as soon as Wednesday from Florida. About 45 minutes after the launch, Odin will separate and begin its solo journey into deep space, while the moon missions — the Athena lander from Intuitive Machines and NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer — take off on their own separate journeys.
No commercial company has ever launched an operational mission beyond the moon, and AstroForge is the first company to receive a license from the Federal Communications Commission that allows it to transmit from deep space. AstroForge will communicate with the spacecraft using undisclosed dishes in India, South Africa, Australia and the United States.
“The 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which is the primary international law governing space activities, does not explicitly prohibit private exploitation of celestial bodies. AstroForge is operating within a developing legal landscape and is relying on friendly U.S. laws that permit private companies to extract, own, and commercialize space resources. Compliance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations will be necessary for AstroForge’s launch and commercial operations.” -Shruti Gurudanti, Rose Law Groups leader of its Space Law practice and director of the firm’s Corporate Transactions
