Cedar Park-based Firefly Aerospace Inc., which builds rockets and lunar landers, announced Feb. 11 that it received an $8.2 million grant from the Texas Space Commission that will enable it to increase its manufacturing capabilities, conduct educational outreach and add 50 jobs.

The company — which has 750 employees spread across more than 275,000 square feet of space in Cedar Park and Briggs — said in an announcement that the funding comes from the Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Fund, which supports development of emerging spaceflight technologies, workforce training and infrastructure critical to Texas’ growing aerospace sector. The Texas Space Commission was launched by the state Legislature in 2023 with $350 million to position Texas as a global industry leader.

Firefly said the funding will result in an additional 5,600 square feet of cleanroom space at its 50,000-square-foot spacecraft facility in Cedar Park, as well as added ground and test equipment, a spacecraft pressure proof test facility at the 200-acre campus in Briggs that has 200,000-square-feet of facilities, and upgraded infrastructure for mission operations and labs. The company’s Cedar Park headquarters is 28,000 square feet. The improvements are expected to be completed by the end of this year.

The 50 jobs will be added in engineering, quality assurance, manufacturing and spacecraft operations, according to the announcement. The grant also will enable the company to expand STEM outreach and internship programs, including working with the schools in the University of Texas System to provide hands-on experience in spacecraft development.

“With the support of the Texas Space Commission, Firefly is expanding our spacecraft production capabilities, creating more high-skilled jobs, and strengthening our collaboration with universities to equip the next generation of aerospace innovators,” said Jason Kim, newly appointed CEO of Firefly Aerospace. “We’re proud to continue growing here in Texas, helping to shape the future of space exploration while fostering the next generation of industry leaders.”

The announcement comes amid a flurry of activity for Firefly. Just a couple of weeks ago, the company’s Blue Ghost lunar lander took off from Earth, racking up hundreds of thousand of miles since then as it collected data to send back to scientists and astrophysicist on the ground. It’s now headed to the Moon, where it will land, and funnel data back to Earth.

In November, the company announced it received another $175 million in investment, giving it a valuation of more than $2 billion. The company has raised a total of about $830 million since its founding in 2017.