NASA selects SpaceX to launch StarBurst gamma-ray mission

NASA has selected SpaceX to launch the StarBurst mission, a small satellite designed to study neutron star mergers and the origins of short gamma-ray bursts. The mission aims to capture high-energy emissions from these cosmic events to support the field of multimessenger astronomy. By combining gamma-ray data with gravitational-wave measurements and observations from other telescopes, researchers can study the same celestial events through different types of signals.

The StarBurst satellite will launch no earlier than 2028 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as part of a Bandwagon rideshare mission. The launch is scheduled to take place from Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

As part of NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers Program, StarBurst represents a lower-cost approach to astrophysical investigation using small spacecraft. The selection was made under a firm-fixed-price task order within NASA’s Venture-Class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare (VADR) contract.