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FOMS Inc. + Mercury Systems — ZBLAN Optical Fiber Manufacturing on ISS

FO Projects: - 106634 — Space Fibers 3 Preflight (FOMS Inc., TRL 4→6, 2021–2024) - 106682 — Orbital Fiber Optic Production Module (Mercury Systems/Physical Optics Corp., TRL 4→6, 2020–2021)

Outcome Category: ISS Mission (Commercial Demonstration), ISS On-Orbit Manufacturing
Confidence: Confirmed (ISS flight); Commercial follow-on unclear

Summary

Two FO projects from competing ZBLAN fiber manufacturers both reached ISS on SpaceX CRS-25 (July 2022). FOMS produced tens of meters of ZBLAN during the CRS-25 mission. (CORRECTION Session 48: The 11.9 km / 45× production record previously attributed to this mission actually belongs to Flawless Photonics on NG CRS-20, Feb–Mar 2024 — a different company with no FO connection.) The core claim is validated: ZBLAN fiber can be manufactured in space. Whether a business is viable remains unresolved — and as of 2026, the competitive landscape has shifted away from FO alumni.

The Technology: Why ZBLAN Needs Zero-G

ZBLAN (ZrF4-BaF2-LaF3-AlF3-NaF) is a fluoride glass with dramatically lower optical attenuation than silica fiber — potentially 100× less signal loss. The problem: on Earth, gravity-driven convection and crystallization during drawing creates structural defects that eliminate most of the theoretical advantage. In microgravity, buoyancy-driven convection disappears. Space-drawn ZBLAN could enable long-haul fiber networks, medical imaging, and laser power transmission with properties unachievable on Earth.

Project Profiles

FOMS Inc. — Space Fibers 3 (SF3)

  • PI: Dmitry Starodubov
  • FO period: 2021-08-09 – 2024-08-09
  • Description: SF3 ISS payload with automation for volume fiber manufacturing; FO parabolic campaign verified automation concepts before SpX-25 launch
  • Location: San Diego, CA
  • Set-aside: Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB)

Mercury Systems / Physical Optics Corporation — ORFOM

  • PI: Daniel E. Marshall
  • FO period: 2020-09-21 – 2021-09-20
  • Note: Mercury Systems acquired Physical Optics Corporation (POC) in 2021 (~$425M acquisition). ORFOM was a POC project that became a Mercury Systems asset at handoff.
  • Location: Torrance, CA

ISS Mission: SpaceX CRS-25 (July 2022)

Event Details
CRS-25 launch July 14, 2022
ISS arrival July 16, 2022
Fiber production campaign Mid-February – mid-March (each payload ~2 weeks)
FOMS production Tens of meters of ZBLAN fiber (details limited)
Mercury/POC production Automated ORFOM module operated; exact output not publicly reported

CORRECTION (Session 48): The 11.9 km record and "45× daily improvement" figures were incorrectly attributed to this CRS-25 mission. That record belongs to Flawless Photonics (Australian/Luxembourg company, no FO connection) flying on NG CRS-20 in Feb–Mar 2024. Seven of Flawless's draws exceeded 700 meters, with the longest exceeding 1 km. See NASA's Optical Fiber Production page.

Source: NASA Armstrong, SpaceNews; correction via Flawless Photonics press, University of Adelaide

Prior FO Suborbital Work

FO parabolic flights were the precursor step. NASA MSFC suborbital research showed ZBLAN in microgravity has fewer imperfections. The FO projects for both FOMS and POC/Mercury validated automation hardware and manufacturing parameters before committing to ISS flight.

This is the classic FO function: suborbital validation → ISS deployment. Both projects followed the textbook path.

Commercial Status (Session 67 Update — Apr 2026)

FOMS: Small but persistent. Claims 3 ISS missions completed (LinkedIn, Jul 2025) — up from the 1 confirmed CRS-25 mission in prior assessments. Production capacity advertised at up to 50 km per mission. Active $199.6K NASA contract (80NSSC24PC267, Aug 2024–Apr 2026) for "manufacturing and delivery of space-annealed glass preforms and hybrid optical fiber." Unconfirmed reports of a merger with Aha Telecom of Hawaii (LinkedIn post Jul 2025, no press release). Total NASA funding identified: ~$5.94M. No evidence of commercial fiber sales. Total NASA contracts:

Award ID Amount Period Description
80JSC019F0177 $4.87M 2019–2023 Space Fibers Flight Demonstrations (CRS-25)
80NSSC17C0014 $750K 2017–2019 Early development
80NSSC24PC267 $199.6K 2024–2026 Space-annealed glass preforms demo
NNX16CA40P $122.8K 2016 SpaceFORM development

Mercury Systems: Effectively dormant on space manufacturing. Mercury acquired POC for $310M (corrected — was stated as ~$425M). Restructuring now showing results: revenue $912M in FY2025 (up 9.2% YoY), EBITDA margins rebounding to 13.1%, projecting $100M+ annual free cash flow. Acquired SolderMask Mar 2026 (defense electronics, embedded in 20+ programs including LTAMDS radar). Despite financial recovery, no ORFOM or ZBLAN press releases since CRS-25 flight — the space manufacturing work from POC heritage remains shelved. Mercury's pivot is firmly toward defense electronics, not space manufacturing.

Flawless Photonics — The New Leader (no FO connection): Australian/Luxembourg spinoff from University of Adelaide (Prof. Heike Ebendorff-Heidepriem). Set the 11.9 km production record on NG CRS-20 (Feb–Mar 2024). European HQ in Luxembourg (~14 staff). Selected for ESA BSGN Advanced Materials accelerator 2nd cohort (Jan 2026). Luxembourg Space Agency + ESA funding. Business model: specialty short-format fiber for mid-IR applications (medicine, material manufacturing, laser sources).

Market assessment: The ZBLAN space manufacturing competitive landscape has shifted from 3 US companies (FOMS, POC/Mercury, Made in Space/Redwire) to being led by an Australian-European startup with no NASA FO heritage. FO's contribution was proving the concept — but the commercial execution is happening elsewhere.

Linkage Assessment

Link Evidence Confidence
FO suborbital → ISS CRS-25 flight NASA press release, SpaceNews Confirmed
~~45× production record~~ CORRECTED Session 48: This record belongs to Flawless Photonics (NG CRS-20, 2024), not FOMS/Mercury Attribution error corrected
Commercial revenue from ZBLAN None found for FOMS or Mercury Not confirmed
Flawless Photonics as market leader ESA accelerator, 11.9 km production, Lux HQ Confirmed (no FO link)

Cross-References

Investigated: Session 14 (2026-04-06). Last updated: Session 67 (2026-04-07) — FOMS now claims 3 ISS missions (up from 1 confirmed). Mercury Systems financial recovery (revenue $912M, margins rebounding) but ZBLAN work still dormant. No change in competitive landscape — Flawless Photonics still leads.