First celebrated in 1958, the Dr. Robert H. Goddard Memorial Dinner is the major event of the Washington space calendar. Held each year in late March or early April, near the anniversary of the first successful flight by Dr. Goddard of a liquid-fueled rocket, it brings together nearly 2,000 members of the government, industry and educational space community.
Awards are presented to a number of outstanding individuals for accomplishments in spaceflight, engineering, science, management and education. The premiere award, the Goddard Trophy, is presented to an individual, group or program deemed to have made the most significant contribution to space activity in the previous year.
In 2023, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and Northrup Grumman Industry Team will receive the Dr. Robert H. Goddard Memorial Trophy. Ball Aerospace led the development, design and manufacture of Webb’s entire optics system, including the primary, secondary, tertiary and fine-steering mirrors. We also designed Webb’s mirror control electronics to operate in a deep-freeze cryogenic space environment. These 22 one-of-a kind cryogenic electronic flight boxes are responsible for aligning the mirror segments on orbit so that they function as one mirror. Ball completed integration and test on these systems.
About Ball Aerospace
At Ball, we bring innovation, integrity, agility and performance to the most important mission – yours.
James Webb Space Telescope
Ball led the development, design and manufacture of Webb’s entire optics system and designed Webb’s mirror control electronics to operate in a deep-freeze cryogenic space environment. Ball completed integration and test on these systems.
TEMPO
Ball Aerospace is responsible for building the spectrometer and telescope on NASA’s Tropospheric Emission: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO).
Landsat
Ball Aerospace delivered OLI for Landsat 8, which launched in 2013, and OLI-2 for Landsat 9, which launched in 2021.
MethaneSAT
Ball Aerospace is developing the high-performance advanced spectrometer instrument for MethaneSAT, which will locate and measure methane emissions across the globe.
Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS)
SBSS gives the U.S. Air Force the ability to detect and track space objects with twice the speed and sensitivity of pervious space sensors. As a member of the Boeing SBSS team, we developed, designed, manufactured, integrated and tested the SBSS spacecraft.
Environmental Intelligence & Sustainability
Our goal is to deliver aerospace missions that study climate, air quality, biodiversity and weather/land imaging to inform science and policy that advance social and environmental justice across the planet.
Jobs at Ball Aerospace
From revolutionary space missions and world-renowned sensors to data and cyber solutions, Ball Aerospace gives its employees unique opportunities to work on cutting-edge missions that help our customers learn about our planet, protect lives and build a better tomorrow.