Civil Space Systems and Technology

The Civil Space Systems and Technology Office leverages Lincoln Laboratory’s technologies and expertise to enable next-generation civilian and dual-use space missions. We focus on developing and transitioning technologies that meet both national security and civil needs — from laser communications systems that support space exploration to satellite instruments and algorithms that provide early warning of extreme weather events.

We offer a diverse collection of advanced technologies, systems expertise, and state-of-the-art facilities. See below to explore how these capabilities might enable your next mission or contribute to the future of space exploration and discovery.

Prototype 100,000-pixel magnetic calorimeter array developed via collaboration between NASA GSFC and MIT Lincoln Laboratory. Photo: NASA GSFC

Core technologies

Our core technology research focuses on inventing new materials, devices, and components to enable revolutionary system capabilities. We pursue innovation in a wide set of areas, including imagers, lasers, quantum systems, RF technology, and optics.

A photo of a small satellite in a studio

Systems expertise

Our engineers ensure that all the components of a system work together to achieve the desired results. Our work ranges from trade and design studies at the beginning of a program, to planning and executing the assembly, integration, and testing of prototype systems. Example mission applications include space payloads for scientific applications, optical and quantum communications demonstrations, and three-dimensional imaging laser radars (lidar).

Prototype telescopes, such as the one above, were designed, built, and tested for the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) system.

Capabilities

Our skilled engineering researchers utilize state-of-the-art equipment in facilities such as our microsystems prototyping foundry, optical systems test facility, and environmental test laboratory to build system prototypes for demonstrating new capabilities. Software engineers complete the system with the addition of sophisticated on-board and ground-based computing, supported by AI technology and our supercomputing center. These prototypes are tested in operational environments to evaluate their ability to provide information to end users for decision support or scientific applications.

A schematic showing optical ground terminals and satellites transmitting data via lasercom links across the Earth and to the Moon.

laser communications

Guiding Light in Air-Filled Fibers for Long-Distance Lasercom

A new type of fiber could transmit the high-power light needed for future deep-space science and exploration missions.

weather

TROPICS

A constellation of small satellites is collecting rapidly refreshed weather data to advance studies of hurricane structure and intensity and improve forecasts.

a screenshot of a user interface shows a world map with radar-like depictions of rain bands, colored blue, green, and yellow.

aviation weather

Global Synthetic Weather Radar

By compiling lightning data, satellite imagery, and numerical weather models, the GSWR provides radar-like analyses and forecasts over regions not observed by actual weather radars.

An illustration of data being sent across a laser from a small satellite to a ground station on Earth.

laser communications

TeraByte InfraRed Delivery (TBIRD)

The laser communications payload has delivered terabytes of data from a satellite to Earth at record-breaking rates that will transform future science missions.

More Projects

The words Civil Space written in the middle of a dark image of the Earth and Moon in space.

Lab Happenings

Laboratory hosts second annual Civil Space Tech Expo

Oct 14

A concept illustration of Go-LoW showing multiple small satellites collected in space.

Lincoln Laboratory and MIT Haystack Observatory partner to unveil hidden parts of the galaxy

Sep 22

A zoomed-in optical image of multiple integrated circuits.

Awards

Lincoln Laboratory technologies win seven R&D 100 Awards for 2025

Sep 4

More News

On the watch for potentially hazardous asteroids

LINEAR, the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research, program is expanding astronomers' knowledge about the population of asteroids and comets in our solar system.

Lighting up the speed of communications

Revolutionary enabling technologies are paving the way to NASA's dreams for missions that send scientific data from distances as far away as Mars at incredible speeds that make possible receipt of huge volumes of data and even near-real-time data analysis.