Best Sources for FO Infusion Tracing¶

Updated: 2026-04-06 (Session 25)

What Works¶

TechPort project descriptions (free text)¶

Signal quality: HIGH for confirmed cases
The structured technologyOutcomes fields are nearly useless for FO — 95%+ have no relatedProjectId. But the free-text description field often contains explicit mentions of downstream infusion. Examples that surfaced: - CDI 91391: "subsequent infusion into the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) demonstration on the Psyche mission" — exact quote - Made in Space 91394: "In-space 3D printing technology is being used in NASA-funded missions on the International Space Station" - IsoTherm 12187: "Work continues under T0091-P" — direct project cross-reference

Lesson: Read the description field for every industry-led completed project. It's where the story is.

USASpending — company + NASA follow-on contracts¶

Signal quality: HIGH for revenue/impact, MEDIUM for causal attribution
Searching for the company name returns all federal awards. Key value: - Dollar amounts to show investment scale - SBIR chain reconstruction (Phase I → Phase II dates match TechPort description text) - DoD contracts post-FO show market diversification - Limitations: doesn't prove FO caused the contract, just that contracts exist

Best practice: Look for contracts starting 1-3 years after FO project start. Same technology keywords as FO project → causal link likely.

NASA Flight Opportunities Transitions Pages (CRITICAL — Session 23 discovery)¶

Signal quality: HIGHEST for FO→mission infusion
URL: https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/transitions-of-flight-tested-technologies/
NASA FO program publishes transition stories when technologies mature from FO to missions. The article "Flight-Tested Technologies for Safety in Space Head to the Moon" explicitly names ARMAS + AstroAnt (IM-2), NDL + RFMG (IM-1), and three Blue Ghost payloads (RadPC, PlanetVac, LuGRE) — all confirmed as FO heritage. This source discovered 3 lunar connections invisible in TechPort metadata (LuGRE, RFMG, AstroAnt). Always check this page when investigating CLPS/mission connections.

Also: FO Community of Practice Webinars (nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/fo-resources/community-of-practice-webinars/) — Aug 2024 webinar featured NDL and RFMG PIs presenting "Journey to the Lunar Surface."

Session 24 update: The main transitions page (https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/transitions-of-flight-tested-technologies/) lists 22 technologies including several not previously in the KB: - Dual-Spinning CubeSat Bus [94156] → TROPICS mission (NASA Earth Venture Mission, 4 CubeSats, May 2023). Previously classified as "student project" in the tracker — actually a confirmed mission infusion into an operational NASA Earth science constellation. - FLUTE [106725] → ISS + NIAC awards (fluidic telescope optics) — DOCUMENTED Session 25 (ames-flute.md) - Ring-Sheared Drop [106625] → ISS deployment (bioreactor) — DOCUMENTED Session 25 (rpi-ring-sheared-drop.md) - ADEPT [91412] → "Blue Origin lunar and Martian cargo deliveries" (future) — investigated Session 25; Blue Origin connection unconfirmed; GCD continuation is normal escalation; no page warranted - EDR Hydrogen Fuel Cell [106653] → Artemis (already documented as Teledyne HEPS) - MPG [Carthage] → SLS/Orion/IM-3 (already documented)

Lesson: This page is the single most authoritative source for FO→mission connections. Check it periodically for new additions. The TROPICS discovery shows that even "student project" FO entries can have significant mission infusion — don't dismiss low-profile projects.

NASA article: "From Flight Test to the Moon: A Tale of Three Payloads"¶

Signal quality: HIGHEST for Blue Ghost FO connections
URL: https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-flight-opportunities/from-flight-test-to-the-moon-three-payloads/
Published around the Blue Ghost M1 landing (Jan-Mar 2025). Names PlanetVac (5 FO flights 2018-2020), RadPC (4 FO flights 2014-2021, 100+ hours above 75,000 ft), and LuGRE (1 FO sounding rocket flight 2024) as the three FO technologies on Blue Ghost. Provides specific test counts and details not available in TechPort metadata.

ESTO TROPICS tech infusions page¶

Signal quality: MEDIUM for FO connection
URL: https://esto.nasa.gov/25years/tropics/
Credits MIT Lincoln Lab's Advanced Component Technology (ACT) project for the microwave receiver miniaturization. Does NOT directly mention FO. The FO connection is through the bus architecture (dual-spinning mechanism), not the instrument. Important nuance for attribution.

NASA press releases / STMD articles¶

Signal quality: CONFIRMED for mission infusion cases
When a technology actually infuses into a mission, NASA typically writes it up. CDI/DSOC confirmed via nasa.gov/directorates/stmd article. Search: "[technology keyword] site:nasa.gov".

NASA Spinoff database¶

Signal quality: HIGH for commercial product cases
Spinoff articles represent NASA's own curation of commercial spinoffs. ADA Technologies 12180 links to Spinoff 2020. Search the Spinoff database for company names from FO portfolio.

TechPort library items¶

Signal quality: VARIABLE
Library items for FO are mostly: - Generic link to "https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/home/index.html" (useless) - "Flight Opportunities project page" at flightopportunities.ndc.nasa.gov (sometimes useful) - Documents (fileIds) — HIGH VALUE when present; read these first - Flickr photo links — useful for visual confirmation of test hardware

What Doesn't Work¶

technologyOutcomes structured fields¶

Signal quality: LOW
Of 430 FO projects, outcome records exist for 96 (22%). But those 96 include projects where "Canceled" is an outcome — artificially inflating the count. More critically: every outcome record observed so far has relatedProjectId: null. The structured linkage system is not being used for FO.

outcomeCount as a quality signal¶

Signal quality: MISLEADING
High outcome count does not mean successful outcomes. Examples: - 91362 (Aerojet MPS-120): 3 outcomes, but project was CANCELED — one outcome IS the cancellation - 91417 (Aerospace Corp hybrid rocket): 4 outcomes, CANCELED - 91392 (SwRI fine steering): 3 outcomes, CANCELED Conclusion: outcomeCount ≥ 2 includes cancel-chain records. Filter by excluding "Canceled" outcome path.

USASpending for government-led FO projects (AFRL, NASA Centers)¶

Signal quality: LOW for tracing
When AFRL or NASA Centers lead an FO project (e.g., 12187 IsoTherm, 93857 Resilient Thermal Panel), the downstream contracts go to the industrial partner (TMT/Thermal Management Technologies) — but AFRL is the contract holder, not the company. Company doesn't appear in USASpending as prime recipient.

Source Priority Order for an FO Project¶

Read description field for explicit infusion mentions
Check library items for documents (fileIds) — read them
Check library items for non-generic links
Search USASpending for company name
NASA Spinoff search for company
Web search: "[company] + [technology keyword] + site:nasa.gov"
General web search for company news, acquisitions, products

Key Discovery: The SBIR Chain Pattern¶

Many FO projects explicitly list prior SBIR awards in their description. This reveals the maturation history: - SBIR Phase I/II (pre-FO): technology proved in lab - FO: validates in relevant environment (microgravity/flight) - SBIR Phase II post-FO: scales up and qualifies for specific application

The FO flight test is often the middle step in a longer SBIR chain. USASpending can reconstruct the before-and-after chain.

Lesson Learned: ISS Production Record Misattribution (Session 48)¶

Risk: Conflating ISS results from different companies/flights. The KB incorrectly attributed Flawless Photonics' 11.9 km ZBLAN production record (NG CRS-20, Feb–Mar 2024) to FOMS Inc. (CRS-25, Jul 2022). Both are ZBLAN fiber producers flying on ISS, but they are different companies on different flights.

Root cause: The original investigation (Session 14) relied on NASA press coverage that described ISS ZBLAN production generally without clearly distinguishing which company achieved which record. The record was "rationalized" as belonging to the FO-funded company.

Prevention: When ISS results involve multiple companies working on the same technology, verify which company's payload produced which specific result. Check NASA's ISS Research Explorer and the specific mission manifests (CRS-25 vs NG CRS-20 payloads) to confirm attribution. Don't assume a headline achievement belongs to the FO-funded company just because they're in the same technology space.

Key Discovery: FLC Awards as Tech Transfer Signals (Session 80)¶

The Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) awards are a high-confidence signal for technology transfer from federal labs to commercial entities. The FLC Excellence in Technology Transfer Award specifically recognizes successful CRADAs and licensing arrangements. Discovered via MIT LL → Tomorrow.io CRADA (FLC 2025).

Source: https://federallabs.org/flc-highlights/awards/ — search for lab names or technology keywords. Each award page names the transferring lab, receiving company, key personnel, and a summary of the technology.

Why this matters for FO: FO technologies developed at federal labs (JPL, ARC, LaRC, GRC) may have been transferred via CRADAs that don't appear in TechPort or USASpending. The FLC award database is a secondary check for commercialization outcomes.

Key Discovery: NOAA Commercial Data Pilots (Session 80)¶

NOAA NESDIS Commercial Weather Data Pilot (CWDP) and the successor Commercial Data Purchase (CDP) program represent a new federal procurement model: government buys data from commercial satellite operators rather than building its own satellites. This matters for FO because FO-validated sensor technologies (like TROPICS microwave sounders) can enter the commercial supply chain and then sell data back to the government.

Sources: - NOAA NESDIS news (nesdis.noaa.gov/news) for RFPs and contract awards - USASpending search for "The Tomorrow Companies" shows NOAA awards - EPIC.NOAA.gov for evaluation reports and technical assessments

Updated: Session 80, 2026-04-07