A Letter from the Chair of the Board, and the President and CEO
Space today is a transformed domain, remade by both an unprecedented wave of technological innovation as well as serious threats that must be outpaced. At this critical time, The Aerospace Corporation is helping lead the way forward with a focus on delivering end-to-end solutions at speed to strengthen our nation’s security and power a new era of progress.
THE BRIGHTEST MINDS OF TODAY
Solving the nation’s hardest problems means recruiting and retaining the brightest minds available. Our collective expertise spans from math, chemistry, and physics to mechanical, aeronautical, and electrical engineering, drawn from private industry, academia, and government talent pools.
More than two-thirds of Aerospace’s technical staff hold advanced degrees, with more than 800 holding a Ph.D. in their respective fields.
More than two-thirds of Aerospace’s technical staff hold advanced degrees, with more than 800 holding a Ph.D. in their respective fields.
ENTERPRISE
MISSION SUCCESS
ENTERPRISE
MISSION SUCCESS
SPACE'S DYNAMIC ERA
The space industry's rapid growth presents exciting new opportunities and possibilities, and Aerospace is a key enabler of government, commercial and international collaboration to pave new paths forward.
HOW AEROSPACE ADVANCES TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE TO DELIVER NEEDED SOLUTIONS
Aerospace is ensuring that its technical capabilities are strategically aligned to support the current and future priorities and mission requirements of its government partners.
SPACE WORKFORCE 2030: BUILDING OFF PROGRESS TO INSPIRE, PREPARE AND EMPLOY
Space Workforce 2030 continues to explore opportunities to create a more vibrant and resilient space industry by bringing together new opportunities, partnerships, and pathways for the future.
Commercial Space Futures
Aerospace's Commercial Space Futures brings our deep technical expertise and independent insight to facilitate U.S. government access to U.S. commercial space capabilities and incorporate these technologies into U.S. space programs.
COSMIC: PROPELLING ISAM FROM TRANSFORMATIONAL TO ROUTINE
Aerospace supported the Consortium for Space Mobility and ISAM Capabilities (COSMIC) in kicking off its endeavor to in forging a whole-of-nation approach to in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing.
RECORD-BREAKING BACK-TO-BACK SUCCESSFUL NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE LAUNCHES
Aerospace supported two key NSSL missions within a span of a few days, successfully delivering the USSF-67 and the Global Positioning Systems (GPS) III-6 payloads to orbit.
AEROSPACE CYBER EXPERTS TAKE TOP HONORS AT DEF CON 31
Whether it was with Moonlighter, SPARTA or winning the Black Badge award, Aerospace's cyber experts demonstrated technical excellence throughout the world's largest hacker conference.
Support Where It's Needed Most
Aerospace works side by side with our customers wherever they are, staffing more than two dozen locations across 11 states, anchored by our two largest campuses in Chantilly, Virginia and El Segundo, California.
Innovation Spotlight Series
Innovation can be found across all aspects of Aerospace. This video series showcases the talent, successes, and stories of the engineers and scientists who are core to what we do.
TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE
TECHNICAL
EXCELLENCE
AEROSPACE’S MOONLIGHTER ILLUMINATES A PATH TO RESILIENCY
The testbed will help define new techniques and best practices to effectively protect systems in the growing and competitive space environment.
AEROSPACE FACILITY RAISES THE BAR FOR ELECTRIC PROPULSION TESTING
Aerospace is continuing to expand researchers’ understanding of electric propulsion with its EP3 vacuum chamber, a new testing facility that advances the capabilities needed for testing the current and upcoming generation of higher-powered thrusters.
AEROSPACE ADVANCES MASSLESS PAYLOADS FOR SPACE MISSIONS
Aerospace is pioneering a new approach to payload provisioning that leverages the ability to reassign spacecraft payloads with advanced software and enhanced capabilities that support mission needs.
LIVING ON MARS
AEROSPACE CREW ACCELERATES HUMAN SPACE EXPLORATION KNOWLEDGE
Over a two-week mission, six experts worked and lived in an immersive, Mars-like environment, demonstrating the corporation’s drive to evolve its expertise and innovation to meet future needs.
PROJECT PHANTOM
FURTHERING SPACE EXPLORATION WITH VIRTUAL AND AUGMENTED REALITY
Aerospace is investigating the potential for VR and AR technology to assist with space operations and change the way humans explore the solar system.
SHAPING THE
SPACE ENTERPRISE
SHAPING THE
SPACE ENTERPRISE
FRAMING THE FUTURE COMMERCIAL HUMAN SPACEFLIGHT ENVIRONMENT
Aerospace supports the FAA in understanding how common best safety practices among well-established transportation sectors can be applied to commercial human spaceflight.
UNDERSTANDING SPACE-CYBER THREATS WITH THE SPARTA MATRIX
The Space Attack Research and Tactic Analysis (SPARTA) matrix serves to ensure the space-cyber community is empowered to continually educate engineers and system defenders so they can overcome the unique cyber-threats they face in the domain.
AEROSPACE BUILDS CAPABILITIES FOR FUTURE MISSION NEEDS WITH IRONSIGHT
Motivated by the industry’s rising interest in rendezvous, proximity operations and docking, a team of Aerospace engineers are creating a testbed to support such operations.
COMMITMENT
TO OUR PEOPLE
COMMITMENT TO
OUR PEOPLE
Making a Difference Together
Throughout the year, Aerospace enables employees to join together and make a tangible impact in the communities where our people work and live.
ENERGIZING A CULTURE OF PURPOSE
Learn more about Aerospace's Corporate Social Responsibility and all the ways our people are fostering a culture of purpose to make an impact across our industry and in our communities. Aerospace is also finding new ways to expand our reach to inspire others through the wonders of space and STEM.
DELIVERING EXCELLENCE WITH INTEGRITY
Recognizing the significant contributions and sacrifices of our nation’s veterans and active-duty members in the armed forces is especially meaningful for Aerospace and its people, many of whom are veterans themselves.
-
Advancing Technical Excellence, experts at Aerospace are exploring new possibilities through leveraging modern capabilities and approaches, including digital engineering, artificial intelligence/machine learning, and modeling and simulation tools. -
In its role as a convener and connector, Aerospace supported its government customers in bridging new opportunities for collaboration with the commercial space industry. -
Aerospace celebrated its newly expanded offices at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, where significant work is being done to support the modernization of the nation’s capabilities to outpace the threat.. -
Aerospace celebrated the successful four-year mission of AeroCube-10, packed with space experiments and technology demonstrations, including atmospheric probes, solar cell longevity tests, and a water thruster. -
Through initiatives including the Wanda M. Austin STEM Scholarship , Aerospace's Rising Stars Program provides diverse students with pathways to higher education and mentorship in scientific and technical fields. -
Cryocoolers are critical for the thermal management of components that enable satellites and sensors to work, and Aerospace's experts know what it takes to keep space cool. -
Aerospace’s Demonstration and Visualization Center enables federal, civil, commercial, and international space customers to better understand the evolving space domain with greater speed and agility. -
Throughout the year, Aerospace hosts various events to bring together government and commercial partners to advance impactful capabilities that shape the future of space. -
Optical communications, or Lasercom, provides numerous advantages for space-based capabilities and Aerospace delivers cross-program technical support in to a variety of government and commercial programs to advance the technology. -
Supporting the nation's collaboration with allied partners, Aerospace hosted members of U.S. Air Force leadership and a cohort of Air Attachés during a visit to Space Systems Command and Aerospace's headquarters in El Segundo. -
Aerospace's Ashley Kowalski shared her scientific findings and personal journey as an analog astronaut for NASA's SIRIUS-21 mission, providing colleagues better insight to her experiences as well as opportunities to advance human space exploration. -
The Mechatronics Research Lab is Aerospace's go-to laboratory for testing and evaluating control systems hardware, including sensors, actuators and the application of those technologies. -
Aerospace employees celebrated the success of the Slingshot 1 mission with a poster signing party and some pizza in xLab. -
The Voice of the Warfighter event, hosted by Aerospace's Commercial Space Futures, brought together key stakeholders to explore advancing the ability to outpace the threat through purpose-built hybrid commercial and government architectures. -
As part of the space workforce of the future, Aerospace interns gain real-world experience collaborating with leading experts and taking on engaging projects that matter. -
By showcasing the latest prototype development and collaborations across Aerospace, xLab supports fostering an environment that pushes innovation forward for space technology. -
Aerospace's Take Your Kids to Work Day provided the opportunity for employees to bring their kids and grandkids to the office and engage with hands-on STEM activities and enjoy expert-led lessons about space science and engineering. -
Thank you for visiting Aerospace's 2023 Annual Report.