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NASA Small Spacecraft & Distributed Systems (SSDS) Program

NASA Small Spacecraft & Distributed Systems (SSDS) Program

Civil space technology program

Appears in 1 story

Stories

Manhole-cover satellites and a 5-month head start: Space Force’s DiskSat sprint signals “launch-on-demand” maturity

New Capabilities

Funded and manages the DiskSat tech demonstration workstream

Rocket Lab just put four “DiskSats” into orbit for the U.S. Space Force—flat, plate-like spacecraft about the size of a manhole cover. The launch wasn’t just another Electron flight; it was a demonstration that the U.S. can move a new satellite design from paperwork to space faster than most people plan a product launch.

Updated Dec 18, 2025