2026 ISAM State of Play available on NASA.gov

The 2026 ISAM State of Play is available for download on NASA.gov. It is an encyclopedia and roadmap for ISAM capabilities in orbit.

The 2026 edition has 368 pages and 11 functional areas. It names robotic manipulation, refueling, and structural assembly.

It is described as an encyclopedia and roadmap for ISAM capabilities in orbit, and it documents what exists now. The 2026 document is available for download on NASA.gov.

The criteria require hardware to exist physically, through ground prototypes or in-flight demonstrations.

The document says ISAM capabilities can support missions that traditional single-launch approaches cannot. Listed future payloads include telescopes too large for any launch vehicle fairing, persistent national security assets, and commercial systems able to receive technology upgrades on orbit.

The report is intentionally collaborative and crowdsourced, with annual interviews involving industry partners. Ames, Glenn, Marshall, Kennedy, Johnson, and international developers whose hardware meets the criteria contribute.

It includes developer profiles, facilities documentation, competitive context, and collaboration opportunities. It also provides a shared vocabulary and a capability baseline.

Companies have approached NASA Langley about inclusion, and unnamed companies asked about proprietary information. The document is described as impartial and invaluable to industry, and as a go-to resource for industry.

Dale Arney is the senior team lead for NASA Langley's ISAM Technology Portfolio, and John Mulvaney is a team member.

For readers tracking the lunar industry, the report matters because the space industry is moving toward more ambitious missions, including lunar infrastructure and on-orbit manufacturing.

It documents what exists now, provides a shared vocabulary and capability baseline, and identifies collaboration opportunities. It also describes capabilities that can support missions traditional single-launch approaches cannot.

Concepts are deferred until the following year's review.