Advanced Space

Technical deep dive alert! 🚨🚨🚨

Did you know that Advanced Space’s CAPSTONE™ mission has a chip-scale atomic clock (CSAC) aboard? Precise onboard timing is essential for any space operations and the same is true for cislunar operations. The difference is that at the Moon, the complexity is magnified due to the great distances and varied gravitational pull. This tiny but powerful tool still achieves precision and demonstrates how spacecraft can autonomously track position, reduce reliance on Earth-based systems, and improve coordination across lunar missions.

The chip-scale atomic clock on CAPSTONE was built by Microchip of Chandler, Arizona and was provided for the mission by CAPSTONE partner Orion Space Solutions, an Arcfield company. Mission partner Terran Orbital built the spacecraft.

At the Moon, precise timing is the foundation for what comes next.

Happy reading: https://advancedspace.com/timing-at-the-moon-deep-dive/

Deep Dive: Timing at the Moon – Advanced Space Advanced Space has been operating an atomic clock on CAPSTONE™ in cislunar space for nearly four years — turning what was once theory into flight-proven data, and laying the foundation for the timing standards, autonomous navigation, and quantum-era infrastructure that the next decade of lunar o...

🚀 Join Advanced Space at the 2026 AFRL (Kirtland Air Force Base) Cislunar SSA Summit! 🌕

We’re excited to participate in this important event, where experts and leaders will discuss the future of cislunar space domain awareness.

📅 May 15 - 17, 2026
📍 Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico