Slingshot Aerospace, Inc., the leader in AI-powered solutions for satellite tracking, space traffic coordination, and space modeling and simulation, today announced it has been awarded a $13.3 million contract by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’sOffice of Space Commerce (OSC) to build the TraCSS user interface. This contract includes a 12-month development period ($5.3M) with four option years.Slingshot will develop the TraCSS Presentation Layer, which is the website and user experience for the United States' new space safety platform. Designed for global use, TraCSS will serve civil, commercial, academic, and national security satellite operators worldwide. Slingshot will leverage its space traffic coordination software, Slingshot Beacon, to support the development of the TraCSS Presentation Layer.
With 86 countries operating over 10,000 active satellites in orbit today and up to 100,000 active satellites expected to be in orbit by 2030, the risk of collisions is growing exponentially. Slingshot data shows that satellite operators experienced a 17% year-over-year rise in conjunctions—close approaches between satellites—in the past year alone. These trends highlight the urgent need for an advanced space traffic coordination system to improve safety and ensure the sustainable use of space.OSC was directed to take over traffic coordination responsibilities from the Department of Defense following the issuance of Space Policy Directive 3 (SPD-3) in 2018. TraCSS.gov is expected to be online and ready to support the transition of all commercial users from space-track.org in late 2025.
