Sierra Space Will Build Key Spacecraft Components for Docking at International Space Station, including Berthing Mechanism, Connection Hatch, Lighting System, and Pressure Sensor Technologies

Sierra Space, a leading commercial space company and defense tech prime that is building a platform in space to benefit and protect life on Earth^®, announced today it has been awarded a contract by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to deliver key components for spacecraft docking on the International Space Station (ISS). This includes a Passive Common Berthing Mechanism (PCBM), connection hatch, lighting system, and pressure sensor technology to enable spacecraft to dock at the ISS. The components will ultimately be used by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for space station missions to the ISS.

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Sierra Space awarded contract by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to build key spacecraft components for docking at the International Space Station, including the pictured Passive Common Berthing Mechanism (PCBM). (Photo: Sierra Space)

“By working with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to support JAXA’s future missions to the ISS, we’re underscoring our commitment to scientific advancement and the growth of the low-Earth orbit economy,” said Dr. Tom Marshburn, Chief Astronaut and VP of Human Factors Engineering at Sierra Space. “This contract reinforces Sierra Space’s reputation for delivering mission-critical, flight-proven systems that our partners can rely on. We’re committed to a diverse and reliable Space Tech product portfolio that helps shape the future of space infrastructure.”

The PCBM is a critical component that enables secure and reliable docking of pressurized vehicles to the ISS. As one of the industry’s trusted suppliers of this flight-proven hardware, Sierra Space’s PCBM provides precise alignment and environmental sealing between the ISS and visiting spacecraft. The fully passive assembly, complementing the active system mounted on the ISS, features minimal moving parts, making it a highly dependable choice for international space missions. Sierra Space will also build the hatch system to round out the entry and exit connection.

This award further strengthens Sierra Space’s position as an industry leader in space infrastructure. The company remains committed to advancing the frontiers of space technology through the development, integration, and testing of Space Tech programs including the creation of environmental systems, subsystems, rocket engines, and propulsion technologies.

About Sierra Space

Sierra Space is a leading commercial space company and emerging defense tech prime, that is building an end-to-end business and technology platform in space to benefit and protect life on Earth. With more than 30 years and 500 missions of space flight heritage, the company is reinventing both space transportation with Dream Chaser^®, the world’s only commercial spaceplane, and the future of space destinations with the company’s expandable space station technology. Using commercial business models, the company is also delivering orbital services to commercial, DoD and national security organizations, expanding production capacity to meet the needs of constellation programs. In addition, Sierra Space builds a host of systems and subsystems across solar power, mechanics and motion control, environmental control, life support, propulsion and thermal control, offering myriad space-as-a-service solutions for the new space economy.

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