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RT-7: Interoperability

Summary. "Enable interoperability and commonality (technical, operations and process standards) among systems, elements, and crews throughout the campaign" (ADD Rev C, p. 83). ADD Rev C reports interoperability standards already applied across Artemis programs, with the International Deep Space Interoperability Standards as the starting point, LunaNet for lunar communications and PNT, and standard interfaces for utilization payloads. "In many cases" the categories and baseline interfaces are known "but specific implementations are still being developed". Open items include a lunar surface docking system, robotic interface standards for planetary surfaces, common containers and loading equipment, and a Mars counterpart to LunaNet. One of the nine recurring tenets. The companion 2025 Architecture Update shows which standards were adopted in 2024 and 2025 (below).

All page numbers below are ADD Rev C, Section 3.5.7 (pp. 98–100), unless marked "Update".

The assessment

  • "The Moon to Mars Architecture incorporates a diverse array of NASA programs, with contributions from industry and international partners. Safely and successfully orchestrating the resulting array of systems requires a commitment to interoperability, a core principle in the Artemis Accords" (p. 98).
  • Where standards apply. "Artemis programs have applied existing interoperability standards to avionics, communication, PNT, power, rendezvous, environmental control and life support systems (ECLSS), robotics, thermal control, utilization, and software. Interoperability requirements may be tailored for each element to balance the performance of the individual element with the integrated mission architecture" (p. 98).
  • How far along. "In many cases, the necessary categories of interoperability and the baseline interfaces have been identified, but specific implementations are still being developed. During pre-formulation, the Strategy and Architecture Office will assess the need for new interoperability standards and partner with the Moon to Mars Program Office to assign responsibility for developing and applying standards" (p. 98).
  • The baseline. "The International Deep Space Interoperability Standards serve as the starting point for future interoperability assessments. Currently, nine International Deep Space Interoperability Standards exist and are refined as needed. Two additional standards include identified forward work to be addressed. To the greatest extent possible, interfaces are being developed for extensibility of the Humans to Mars segment" (p. 99).

Other actions taken (pp. 99–100), in short form:

  • The Moon to Mars Program Office "flows interoperability standards to elements of the architecture"; the ACR process "endorses new and revised interoperability standards".
  • Architectural studies "have mapped functional interoperability between systems assumed to be deployed for a given design reference mission to identify and close gaps".
  • Utilization interfaces. "NASA standardized physical, data, power, payload transfer, and other interfaces for utilization across the Moon to Mars Architecture enabling payloads to move through the architecture and be hosted by various systems; these interfaces are consistent with existing Gateway requirements, the International Space Power System Interoperability Standards, the International External Robotic Interface Interoperability Standards, and other applicable standards" (p. 99). See Utilization payloads and equipment.
  • A standard for graphical user interfaces across Artemis, and NASA's Icon and Symbol Library for Orion, Gateway, HLS "and future lunar and Mars systems".
  • Lunar power. "Trade studies are examining lunar power concepts, including bi-directional power sharing between systems, power quality for defined missions, power transmission over long distances, and the need for standardized power connectors on the lunar surface" (p. 99).
  • An interoperability working group in the Moon to Mars Program Office, and participation in the Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium, LEAG and MEPAG "to capture international partner, commercial, and academic perspectives".
  • LunaNet. NASA, ESA and JAXA, with input from the Interagency Operations Advisory Group and others, "developed the LunaNet Interoperability Specification for lunar communication and PNT standards; NASA and ESA service procurements have incorporated this standard" (p. 99). See SCaN Networks.
  • Spectrum plans documented in the International Communication System Interoperability Standard.
  • The Artemis Flight Operations and Payload Operations Standards.
  • Surface networks. "A set of requirements that creates an interoperable network enabling lunar surface systems to have data connectivity, command, and control among a distributed set of local and remote users has been developed and strategically applied to current systems. Additional requirements to enable autonomy and cooperative operations between robotic systems and crew have been identified to be applied to new systems as part of their development" (p. 100).

Future considerations

"RT-7 guides interface standardization for all elements, but specific designs and requirements for interoperability are still undergoing studies and refinement. In many cases, these studies focus on a subset of relevant elements and may fall short of architecture-wide coordination. Opportunities for further lunar surface interoperability and compatibility include" (p. 100):

  • Surface docking. "Lunar Surface Docking system that is capable of mating two pressurized systems to provide the transfer of crew and supplies in a shirt-sleeve environment and without the need of pressurization cycles"
  • Robotic interfaces. "The International External Robotic Interface Interoperability Standards currently only addresses robotic attachments in a microgravity environment; it needs additional work to define requirements for operation on the lunar and Martian surfaces"
  • Common equipment. "Identification of common equipment, container, loading and offloading solutions across the architecture is a priority to simplify the training on systems, reduce cargo sparing, and promote efficiency in sustaining missions." Common crew displays "will support both goals of meeting recurring tenets of Crew Time and Maintainability and Reuse"
  • Mars communications. "Development of an interoperability specification for communications activities at Mars, analogous to the LunaNet Interoperability Specification referenced in Section 2.3.14.2"
  • The Artemis Flight Operations and Payload Operations Standards (listed again)

"NASA has initiated efforts to identify, develop, approve, and levy Moon to Mars Architecture interoperability standards to govern cross-program and cross-partner element application" (p. 100).

Standards adopted, by year

The companion 2025 Architecture Update has a "Deep Space Standards" page (p. 15). "International standards help space agencies and aerospace companies from around the world collaborate in deep space. These standards — developed in collaboration with the international community and industry partners — define interfaces and environments to facilitate cooperative deep space exploration endeavors. These standards focus on priority topics for the early phases of exploration planning; they are not intended to dictate design features beyond interfaces" (Update, p. 15). The badges, groups and years were read from the PDF:

Group, as printed Standards Adopted
"Moon to Mars Architecture Standards" Communications 2024
Avionics, Software, Power 2025
"Additional Gateway Standards" Rendezvous, Docking, Robotics, Life Support, Thermal no year shown

The page shows nine standards. The ADD says "Currently, nine International Deep Space Interoperability Standards exist" (p. 99). Neither source lists them against the other. A slide at the January 2026 workshop names nine standards under the heading "International Deep Space Interoperability Standards", and they match the Update's nine by name, with "ECLSS" where the Update's badge says "Life Support" (the wiki's comparison; the slide doesn't set its list against the badges; below). The Update doesn't say which two standards have "identified forward work" (ADD p. 99). "NASA maintains a webpage that captures the standards adopted by NASA's Moon to Mars program and for Gateway, NASA's lunar-orbiting outpost. As the agency adopts new standards, they will appear on this page" (Update, p. 15); that page is below.

At the same workshop NASA briefed the same split by year: "As part of the 2025 Architecture Concept Review, NASA elevated three deep space standards to the architecture level, joining the communications standard elevated in 2024", with the Update's four badges and years (2026 industry and academia workshop, slide 16).

The Update's infrastructure feature names "validating interoperability standards" as part of NASA's role as "an anchor customer" for lunar services (Update, p. 9; see RT-9).

NASA's standards page

NASA's "International Deep Space Standards" page, the one the Update links, is undated; it was fetched in October 2026 and links a document uploaded in January 2026 (source page). It lists "international deep space standards adopted by NASA's Moon to Mars program and for Gateway" in two groups: "NASA adopts Gateway standards to ensure interoperability specifically across Gateway elements and visiting vehicles; Moon to Mars Standards are applicable throughout the cis-lunar architecture (including Gateway)" ("International Deep Space Standards").

Group, as printed Standard Revision, as printed Adoption, as printed
"Moon to Mars Standards" Avionics "Baseline – March 2019" none on the page (Update: 2025)
Communications "B – April 2024" "Adopted by the agency in 2024 through the Architecture Concept Review process"
Power "A – July 2022" none on the page (Update: 2025)
Software "Baseline – September 2020" none on the page (Update: 2025)
"Gateway Standards" Docking (the International Docking System Standard Interface Definition Document) "G – August 2025" none
ECLSS "Baseline – March 2019" none
Rendezvous "Baseline – March 2019" none
Robotics "Baseline – March 2019" none
Thermal "Baseline – August 2019" none

The revision column dates each document; it is not the year the architecture adopted the standard. What each standard covers, in the page's words, is on the source page. The wiki's comparison:

  • Nine, as in the ADD and the Update. The page's nine are the Update's nine badges, by name and group ("ECLSS" for the Update's "Life Support"; "Moon to Mars Standards" and "Gateway Standards" for the Update's "Moon to Mars Architecture Standards" and "Additional Gateway Standards"). The page shows no tenth or eleventh standard and marks none as having forward work, so it doesn't say which "Two additional standards include identified forward work" (ADD p. 99): two of the nine, or two more.
  • Where the documents are. ADD Rev C's footnote to the standards cites https://www.internationaldeepspacestandards.com (p. 99). Eight of the page's nine documents are on that site; Docking's is on nasa.gov.
  • The open items above. The robotics standard is a Gateway standard, written for "module, visiting vehicle, and on-orbit relocatable or replaceable unit providers", consistent with the ADD's "only … microgravity" (p. 100). The docking standard is a Gateway standard too; the page has no lunar surface docking standard, which the ADD lists as an opportunity (above).

Changes since Rev C

Briefed at the January 2026 workshop for industry and academia, a month after Rev C. Slide numbers are the deck's.

Standards and specifications, two lists (slide 25, "Interoperability Standards"). The slide sets the international standards beside lunar surface specifications that are not yet public:

"International Standards (International Deep Space Interoperability Standards)" The Update's badges (Update, p. 15) "Lunar Surface Specifications (not yet publicly available)"
Avionics Avionics (2025) Communication
Communications Communications (2024) C&DH
Docking Docking (Gateway) E3
ECLSS Life Support (Gateway) Lighting
Power Power (2025) Navigation
Rendezvous Rendezvous (Gateway) Power
Robotics Robotics (Gateway) Software
Thermal Thermal (Gateway)
Software Software (2025)

The first and third columns are the slide's two lists, each in its order; a row doesn't pair them. The middle column is the wiki's comparison by name: it sets the Update's badges against the first, with "(Gateway)" for its "Additional Gateway Standards" group; the slide doesn't make this alignment. The slide doesn't expand "E3" or "C&DH", and neither does ADD Rev C (its text and the Glossary, searched). The ADD mentions surface network requirements "developed and strategically applied to current systems" (p. 100) but no lunar surface specifications by that name; no source says whether these are the same, and the wiki doesn't pair them.

"Problem Description – Multilateral Interoperability" (slide 24). A rendering of a lunar surface scene whose labels are the systems that must work together: "Communication, Navigation & Timing"; "ISRU, science experiments, payloads, lunar infrastructure, etc."; "Pressurized Rover"; "Spacesuits & Tools"; "Foundational Surface Habitat"; "Human Landing System"; "Lunar Terrain Vehicle"; the Gateway in an inset (the text layer also has "Orion"). Arrows join pairs of them, coded "Near-term", "Mid-term" and "Long-term". The slide gives no text beyond the labels, and the wiki doesn't tabulate the arrows. "Foundational Surface Habitat" is not an ADD name; see Initial Surface Habitat.

NASA's standards page, as fetched in October 2026, lists the same nine standards as the Update, and none of the seven lunar surface specifications. The only date on it later than Rev C is a file's upload path: the docking standard's Revision G ("August 2025") was uploaded in January 2026 (above).

Technology gaps on the same subjects as the open items. The ADD doesn't link them; the pairing is the wiki's:

Recurring tenets · RT-4 Crew Time · RT-5 Maintainability and Reuse · RT-1 International Collaboration · C&PNT Systems · Moon Base environment (interoperability at the Moon Base)

Sources

ADD Rev C, pp. 83, 98–100 · 2025 Architecture Update, pp. 9, 15 · 2026 industry and academia workshop, slides 16, 24–25 · International Deep Space Standards page