The Office of Space Launch (OSL) within the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and NASA’s Launch Services Program sponsor the Small Payload Rideshare Conference. The conference agenda focuses on investigating concepts and technologies that will enable the small payload community to meet future launch needs and provide the best possible launch capabilities in a cost-effective manner.

The conference has evolved into a forum where the launch services providers (LSP)  interact with the small satellite community in a focused, working environment to address the needs of the community for affordable small payload access to space and the impediments hampering its success. The LSPs include the small entrepreneurs with small, unproven launch vehicles, the more developed LSPs with small launch services offering dual manifest opportunities, and the large LSPs capable of providing secondary payload opportunities. 

This annual conference brings together key members of the Government Small Satellite Launch Services Acquirers, Government Science & Technology Community, Small Satellite Companies, Large & Small Launch Services Companies, Government & Commercial Launch Sites/Ranges, Support Contractors & Entrepreneurs, Associations & Not-For-Profit Organizations, and Academia.

For purposes of this conference, Small Payload is defined as a spacecraft less than 5,000 pounds; a Co-Manifested Rideshare  is more than one primary spacecraft on the same launch vehicle, each paying a pro rata share of the total launch costs; a Rideshare is a secondary spacecraft launched into space on large launch vehicle and deployed after the primary spacecraft; a Secondary Payload  is a small spacecraft (typically much less than 400 pounds) flying on a primary space mission, paying only the additive costs of integration, and willing to be deployed into the prime payloads’ insertion orbit after its separation. A Hosted Payload is a payload manifested on a spacecaft bus flying on a primary space mission.