February 2025 workshop: Paths to Partnership (industry and academia deck)¶
Document: 2025-ia-workshop-paths-to-partnership.pdf, 22 slides, 2,337,837 bytes, from
https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/, fetched 2026-10-01T18:28:05Z (sources/manifest.csv). Footer
"February 2025", "Moon to Mars Architecture Workshops" on every slide. Part of the industry and academia set on the
Architecture Workshops page. Text:
sources/text/docs/2025-02-2025-ia-workshop-paths-to-partnership.txt; images in
sources/raw/slides/2025-02-2025-ia-workshop-paths-to-partnership/.
Rank and method. A briefing, older than ADD Rev C (SCHEMA, "Workshop slides"). Five offices each tell U.S. industry and academia how to work with them, then a panel card (slide 22). All 22 slides were read in the text layer. The images of the nine text-poor slides (1, 3, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 16, 19) were viewed, and those of slides 2, 14, 20, 21 and 22, whose layout the text layer scrambles. No "Moon Base", "CUI" or "Pre-Decisional" in the text (searched).
The partner deck. The international partners heard a different "Paths to Partnership" set, with OIIR's
guidelines first: International Partnerships deck. It is not a
near-copy (sources/workshops-screening.md lists none), but it repeats this deck's ESDMD chart under another title
and its SMD CLPS slide with other benefits.
Summary. Most of the deck is about funding routes, not the architecture. What bears on it: the pre-formulation chart under a new title, "Partner Path to Infusion into Artemis Enterprise", with a phrase added to the acquisition strategy meeting ("Agency affirmation of the element in Artemis"); CLPS as SMD briefed it in February 2025; and the Mars Campaign Office's new-start cycle and "MCO Priority Development Areas", which it ties to the ADD's technology gaps ("Other ADD technology gaps will be considered").
Slides¶
| Slide | Title (as printed) | Content |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Paths to Partnership" | Section title (image): "Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate"; "Julie Grantier, Deputy Manager for Integration, Strategy and Architecture Office, NASA – ESDMD - SAO" |
| 2 | "Partner Path to Infusion into Artemis Enterprise" | The pre-formulation chart |
| 3 | "Ways to do Business with NASA via the Office of Procurement" | Section title (image): "Kameke Mitchell, Director of the Procurement Strategic Operations Division" |
| 4–7 | "Engaging with NASA"; "Procurement Contact Information" | Procurement routes |
| 8 | "Paths to Partnership" | Section title (image): "Space Operations Mission Directorate"; "David Baumann, Human Research Program Director, Space Operations Mission Directorate, NASA – SOMD – HRP" |
| 9–11 | "Human Research Program (HRP)"; "HRP Collaboration"; "Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH)" | Human research |
| 12 | "Paths to Partnership" | Section title (image): "Space Technology Mission Directorate"; "Walt Engelund, Deputy Associate Administrator for Programs, Space Technology Mission Directorate, NASA – STMD" |
| 13–15 | "Future STMD Organizational Structure"; "External STMD Mechanisms to Advance Tech"; "Tipping Point and Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity" | Space technology |
| 16 | "Paths to Partnership" | Section title (image): "Science Mission Directorate"; "Debra Needham, Program Scientist, Science Mission Directorate, NASA – SMD" |
| 17–18 | "Industry Delivering Science"; "Competitive Science through ROSES" | Science |
| 19 | "Paths to Partnership" | Section title (image): "Mars Campaign Office"; "Dayna Ise, Program Scientist, Mars Campaign Office, NASA – ESDMD – M2MPO" |
| 20–21 | "New Start Process – Current State"; "MCO Priority Development Areas" | Mars Campaign Office |
| 22 | "Charting the Course: … to Partnership with NASA" | A card labeled "PANEL", "Kavli Auditorium" (image): moderator Julie Grantier (ESDMD, SAO); Kameke Mitchell (Office of Procurement), David Baumann ("Director, Human Research Program", SOMD), Debra Needham ("Program Scientist, Exploration Science Strategy and Integration Office", SMD), Walt Engelund (STMD), Dayna Ise ("Director, Mars Campaign Office", ESDMD, M2MPO) |
The pre-formulation chart (slide 2)¶
Read from the image. "Partner Path to Infusion into Artemis Enterprise", subtitled "Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate". The swim-lane chart of the 2024 international partnerships paper's Figure 2 (transcription): the purple NASA lane ("Arch. Studies", "Gap Analysis/Concept", "Mission /Concept Trades", "Acquisition Plan", "M2M Program Int."), the milestones ACR, EI, MCR and ASM, a lane for "International Partners" ("Studies", "Partner Pre-Phase A/B", "Partner Integration", ending in an "IA" document) and one for "Industry Partners" ("Studies", "Industry BAA, RFI, etc.", an "RFP" document), the shaded "Element Definition" stretch, and the three numbered notes ("Feasibility studies and collaboration identify potential concept."; "Mission refinement to optimize for strategic value and functional achievement, using study mechanisms to better inform planning."; "Feedback incorporated into architecture products as milestones occur.").
The captions, as printed:
- "Element Initiation (EI)": "Overt decision to proceed with maturation of concept assessed for priority, budget, and strategy"
- "Mission Concept Review (MCR)": "Evaluates feasibility of proposed mission concept(s) and its fulfillment of architecture needs and objectives."
- "Acquisition Strategy Meeting": "Agency affirmation of the element in Artemis. Transition from SAO to M2MPO for implementation, completion of project roles and responsibilities leading to Implementing Arrangement (IA) or contracting process (e.g., RFP)" (the first sentence in italics on the slide)
Against the other versions (the wiki's comparison): the title is new, and so is the italic first sentence of the acquisition strategy caption. A search of all source texts finds "affirmation" and "Infusion into Artemis" only in this deck. The same chart in Architecture 101 at the same workshops is titled "Partner Pre-formulation Process" (slide 10 there), and the partners' Paths deck has "Partner Pre-Formulation Process" without the added sentence (slide 7 there). The industry lane has "Industry BAA, RFI, etc.", as in 2024; the February 2026 Rome version has "Partner Pre-Phase A" there (RT-1).
Procurement routes (slides 4–7)¶
From NASA's Office of Procurement, as printed:
- Entry points (slide 4): SAM.gov ("The most active portal for finding various NASA opportunities"), Grants.gov and NSPIRES.
- Broad Agency Announcements (slide 5): "NASA Announcement of Opportunities (AO) and NASA Research Announcement (NRA) are forms of Broad Agency Announcements (BAA)", with FAR 35.016 quoted. An AO is "always used for specific space flight programs"; an NRA "Can result in a grant, contract or cooperative agreement." Named calls: "NextStep III: Solicits concept studies, basic and applied research and technology development and demonstrations in support of NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate (ESDMD) and Space Operations Mission Directorate (SOMD)"; ROSES 2025 (NNH25ZDA001N, "on or about February 14, 2025"); Research Opportunities in Aeronautics.
- Other opportunities (slide 6): SBIR/STTR (Phase I "$150K", Phase II "$$850K, 24 months", Phase III "Non-SBIR Funding"; Phase I due 10 March 2025); the "Space Technology Payload Challenge: Addressing shortfalls to meet future exploration, science, and other mission needs" ("Up to nine winners will receive up to $500,000 each to build their payloads plus the opportunity to test them on suborbital, hosted orbital, or parabolic flights"); NIAC (Phase I "$175K for nine months", Phase II "$600K for 2-year study", Phase III "$2M for 2-year study"); the "NASA LunaRecycle Challenge", "$3 million", on recycling "to reduce solid waste and improve the sustainability of longer-term lunar missions".
- Contact (slide 7): the Office of Procurement's address, web site and e-mail, and the NASA Acquisition Forecast.
The January 2026 workshop deck names a NextSTEP "Appendix B" with a nextstep-3-b address
(RT-2); the slide here doesn't mention appendices,
so the wiki doesn't link the two.
Human research (slides 9–11)¶
- HRP (slide 9, image): "Mission: Enable space exploration beyond low Earth orbit by reducing risks to human health and performance"; "The Human Research Program (HRP) offers funding, collaboration, and partnership opportunities to those interested in the future of human spaceflight."
- "HRP Collaboration" (slide 10): solicitations through NSPIRES and SBIR; the "HRP Annual Investigators' Workshop – January 2026" ("3000+ participants. Commercial Space, Industry, International Partners, Academia, OGAs/DoD"); domestic Space Act Agreements and international partners; education programs (EPSCOR, STAR, SHINE).
- TRISH (slide 11, image): "TRISH Funding Opportunities": a "Catalyst Program" for unsolicited proposals (Tier 1 "$150K … limited to one year", Tier 2 "$150K for up to two years"); "Remote Biomarker Analysis Technologies" ("Advance remote biomarker analysis capabilities in microphysiological systems (MPS)", deadline 6 March 2025, "$400K for one year"); an "EXPAND Program" for "Commercial Space Health Research".
None of these slides names a sub-architecture, gap or objective. The architecture's crew-health gaps are on Human Systems.
Space technology (slides 13–15)¶
-
"Future STMD Organizational Structure" (slide 13, image, dated "2025-01-23" in its corner). Five rows, each with its "Capability Area" items, as printed:
Row Capability areas "GO: Space Transportation" Advanced Propulsion; Nuclear Propulsion; Flight Vehicle Systems (including Ascent Systems); Cryogenic Fluid Management "LAND: Space-to-Surface Access" Deceleration Systems; Guidance & Navigation Systems; Landing Systems & Environments; Entry Modeling & Instrumentation "LIVE: Surface Infrastructure and Exploration" Surface Power; In Situ Resource Utilization; Surface Structures & Construction; Environments & Dust Mitigation; Surface Mobility & Transportation; Surface Habitation & Logistics "EXPAND: In-Space Infrastructure and Discovery" Observation Systems; In-Space Sustainability; Communications, Position, Navigation & Timing; In-Space Servicing, Assembly & Manufacturing; Small Spacecraft & Distributed Systems "ENABLE: Foundational Capabilities" Avionics & Sensors; Autonomous Systems & Robotics; Advanced Materials, Structures & Manufacturing; Advanced Power & Thermal A sixth box, "CATALYSTS: Innovative Mechanisms", lists "NIAC/CIF/ECI", "STRG", "PCC", "Tech Transfer", "SBIR/STTR", "Flight Opportunities", "TP/ACO" and "Cross-cutting Services". The wiki counts 23 capability areas under five rows. The slide doesn't relate them to the architecture's sub-architectures or gaps, and the wiki doesn't either.
-
"External STMD Mechanisms to Advance Tech" (slide 14, image): five headings over seven boxes, as printed: "Contracts" (SBIR/STTR; NIAC), "Grants and Cooperative Agreements" (Space Technology Research Grants), "Challenges" (Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing), "Flight Tests" (Flight Opportunities (FO)), "Funded / Unfunded Space Act Agreements" (Tipping Point Announcement for Partnership Proposals; Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity), over "Cross-cutting activities and other tools" and the address
techport.nasa.gov/opportunities. - Tipping Point and ACO (slide 15). Tipping Point "uses a cost-sharing model to quickly mature commercial technologies"; through ACO, "NASA centers partner with selected companies to provide expertise, facilities, hardware and software at no cost", in unfunded Space Act Agreements. "Since 2015": Tipping Point "61 projects selected", "$618 million awarded"; ACO "78 projects selected", "~$78 million in-kind resources provided". Examples: a Redwire Tipping Point award "to prototype a manufacturing technology intended to build critical infrastructure on the surface of the Moon, including landing pads, roads, berms, and foundations for habitats"; an ACO on first-stage recovery for Rocket Lab's Neutron.
"Shortfalls" appears only on slide 6, for the payload challenge ("address one or more of NASA's technology shortfalls"); the STMD section lists none. STMD's February 2025 shortfall ranking is on the Foundational Exploration gaps deck (open question 87).
Science (slides 17–18)¶
- "Industry Delivering Science" (slide 17). "SMD also manages the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative to deliver science instruments and technology demonstrations to the lunar surface and enable operations of those payloads." "CLPS Overview": "Indefinite Quantity Indefinite Duration contract"; "14 companies in IDIQ pool"; "12 Task Orders awarded"; "2 missions executed with 1 landing on the Moon"; "1 active mission with another expected Q1 2025". Captions: "Firefly's Blue Ghost lander is on its way to the lunar surface, carrying 10 NASA scientific instruments and technology demonstrations"; "Intuitive Machines' Athena lander is IM's second mission to the Moon, delivering a NASA drill and spectrometer technology demonstration". Benefits to NASA include "Test technologies in advance of human exploration on the surface of the Moon and Mars". On the CLPS page.
- "Competitive Science through ROSES" (slide 18). "Open and Upcoming Program Elements": Artemis IV Deployed Instruments; "PRISM SALSA - Stand-Alone Landing Site Agnostic PRISM"; SSERVI CAN 5; Artemis III Participating Scientists. Annual elements for instruments (PRISM, DALI, PICASSO, MatISSE) and research (LDAP, MDAP, LARS, LMaP, planetary data archiving, PSTAR). "Other Engagement Opportunities": Lunar and Mars Surface Science Workshops, "Uncrewed Science with Pressurized Rover (April)", "Outbriefs from NASA HQ and Artemis (May)", "Artemis Orienteering/Geolocation (TBD)", "National Academies Studies (non-polar lunar; Mars science)".
Mars Campaign Office (slides 20–21)¶
Both slides read from the image.
"New Start Process – Current State" (slide 20), an "MCO Portfolio Life Cycle" in three stages:
- "November - February", Planning: "SAO holds Architecture Concept Review and releases annual Architecture Definition Document revision"; "Domain Technology Development Plans released"; "Call for New Start Task Submissions". A "Partnering Opportunity Entry" arrow points in here: "Utilization of SAAs through centers", "SBIR/STTR", "Program advocacy/Augmentation".
- "March - July", Portfolio Refinement: domain leads recommend new starts to the MCO Director, who recommends a portfolio to the Moon to Mars Program, which recommends it to the directorate; "Partnerships and dependencies established and approved."
- "August - October", Execution and Reporting: "Execution planning guidance released"; "DLs coordinate with Portfolio Leads to provide technical progress updates to SAO CIT for ESDMD architecture gap updates".
- A side box: "Industry/Academia solicitations and partnerships are being assessed for inclusion in the portfolio".
"MCO Priority Development Areas" (slide 21), as printed:
| Box | Items |
|---|---|
| "Crew Health and Performance" | Food systems improvements (packaging and storage for extreme environments; cook and prep tech; food safety for edibles; "More work in crop production"); Fire Safety ("Exploration atmosphere safer materials"; "Partial-g smoke/fire detection and fire suppression"; "Emergency breathing mask for all exploration atmospheres"); Health Countermeasures ("Smaller exercise equipment"; "Better vibration isolation systems for exercise equipment"; "Wearable sensorimotor countermeasures devices"); Medical ("Wearable diagnostic devices"; "Autonomous clinical decision support (doc in a box)"; "Medical equipment sterilization technologies") |
| "Surface Systems and Environments" | "Power management and distribution between surface elements (with STMD)"; "Lunar dust-tolerant systems and dust mitigation" (cleaning tools; "Connectors and sealing surfaces for cryo, power, pneumatics, and fluids"; "Dust tolerant fabrics, and electrodynamic dust shields for fabrics"); "Surface science tools development"; "Bearing materials, seals, and lubricants for extreme environments" |
| "Transportation and Vehicle Systems" | "Cryo fluid storage (with STMD)"; "ISRU manufacturing" |
| "Earth Independent Operations" | "Communications, position, navigation, and timing work with LunaNet and SCaN coordination"; "Lunar surface clock"; "Fiber optic sensors"; "Autonomous photogrammetry"; "Nano sensors" |
| (boxed alone) | "Other ADD technology gaps will be considered" |
The slide prints no gap IDs. The areas whose wording is close to a technology-gap title are matched to the December 2025 gaps on the Gaps index, by title; the matches are the wiki's.
What changed by Rev C¶
The wiki's comparison, for the parts that bear on the architecture:
- ADD Rev C, Section 3.4, describes element initiation and mission concept reviews, but has no acquisition strategy meeting and no "Implementing Arrangement" (RT-1). "Agency affirmation of the element in Artemis" has no counterpart in Rev C's text.
- Rev C reports CLPS at "15 task orders" to seven providers; the slide's "12 Task Orders" and "14 companies in IDIQ pool" are a year older (CLPS).
- Rev C's Appendix D describes how gaps are prioritized; it doesn't describe the Mars Campaign Office's portfolio cycle or its use of the gaps.
Oddities¶
As printed, images checked:
- Dayna Ise is "Program Scientist, Mars Campaign Office" on slide 19 and "Director, Mars Campaign Office" on slide 22 (and on the panels deck's "The Human System" card).
- "Value at $$850K" (slide 6).
- Slide 22's title reads "Charting the Course: to Partnership with NASA", with the word "Paths" overprinted on the line below it.
- "NextStep III" (slide 5), where NASA's industry page writes "NextSTEP".
Related pages¶
International Partnerships deck · Panels and roundtables, industry and academia · Architecture 101 deck · RT-1 · RT-2 · CLPS · Gaps index · Architecture definition process