Paper Session III-C - Comet: Developed Technologies Facilitate Activation

The COMmercial Experiment Transporter (COMET) is a set of hardware and related infrastructure used to support orbital experiments of the CCDSs and their industrial partners. During this year major support contracts were signed, preliminary design reviews conducted, experiments selected for the first mission, and long-lead items placed on order. Launch and recovery sites were selected. Licenses for the launch vehicle, recovery system, and recovery operations were filed by the contractors with the Department of Transportation. Critical Design Reviews (CDRs) have identified several management and technical issues that must be resolved before selecting a final launch date