Aerospace giant Boeing has announced that it had received one of three development contracts to build a satellite payload prototype and develop a new secure, resilient satellite communications architecture for the United States Space Force’s Evolved Strategic SATCOM (ESS) program. Boeing released a statement on Sunday saying that ESS will be a military satellite communications (MILSATCOM) system. It is a critical component of the U.S. Space Force’s strategy. The initial ESS development contract is valued at $298 million. Contracts for the full ESS system are expected to be awarded in 2025. – ADVERTISEMENT – CONTINUE READING BELOW – “We have worked […]
space force
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WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force has tested a new anti-jamming capability that will make the military’s main satellite communications constellation more resilient than ever, the Space and Missile Systems Center announced Aug. 26. On June 18, SMC successfully tested the Mitigation and Anti-Jam Enhancement, or MAJE, capability for Wideband Global SATCOM. WGS provides global satellite communications to American forces. MAJE includes both software and hardware upgrades to the Army’s Global SATCOM Configuration Control Element, the ground system the detects, identifies, locates and mitigates interference with WGS satellites. According to SMC, the test demonstrated MAJE’s ability to detect and suppress interference […]
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. — Gen. James Dickinson on Aug. 20 took the reins of U.S. Space Command, becoming the second-ever leader of the organization and the first Army officer to hold the position. Dickinson’s promotion signals a new era for Space Command, the military’s space operations arm established in August 2019, which will now have a commander solely dedicated to standing up a new unified command focused on protecting military space assets against new threats posed by Russia and China. “To be clear, our objective is to deter conflict,” Dickinson said during the ceremony. Defense News traveled to the […]
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Space Force will begin sharing valuable space situational awareness data with the United Kingdom as part of Operation Olympic Defender, the service announced Aug. 14. Under a recently signed agreement, the Space Force will share it’s Standardized Astrodynamics Algorithm Library with the U.K.‘s Ministry of Defense. SAAL is a collection of the Space Force’s understanding of orbital physics and algorithms that helps the service predict the trajectories of objects on orbit. “Aggressive actions in space must be deterred through a multinational, coordinated effort, allowing for the defense and protection or our collective capabilities,” said Maj. Gen. DeAnna […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force hopes its prototype low-Earth orbit weather satellites will entice commercial businesses and allied nations to partner up on the project, reducing the cost of delivering critical weather data to the war fighter. The U.S. Air Force has been trying to replace the aging Defense Meteorological Satellite Program for years, ever since Congress opted to can it in 2015. Two capabilities in particular have proven a challenge for replacement: cloud characterization and theater weather imagery. But now the Space Force thinks it has the answer. By leveraging the increasingly popular low-Earth orbit architecture demonstrated by SpaceX’s […]
In yet another step toward firmly establishing an independent identity from the other services, the U.S. Space Force has published a new document articulating “spacepower” as a separate and distinct form of military power. The Space Capstone Publication is the Space Force’s first official doctrine, and it will serve as a foundation for further doctrines that will delve deeper into the thorny military issues confronting the nascent service. The document lays out when military spacepower should be employed, who makes up military space forces, and the culture those forces should strive for. Key to that culture is organizational agility, innovation, and […]
On 6 August, the U.S. Space Force has announced that it has shipped fourth Lockheed Martin-built GPS III Space Vehicle (GPS III SV04) to Cape Canaveral. The U.S. Space Force Space and Missile Systems Center successfully delivered the fourth Global Positioning System (GPS) III satellite to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, July 14. GPS III Space Vehicle (SV) 04 was safely transported from the Lockheed Martin facility in Waterton, Colorado to Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville, Florida. The satellite was carried aboard a C-17 Globemaster III originating from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. – ADVERTISEMENT – CONTINUE READING BELOW – […]
WASHINGTON – Up and coming U.S. government launch provider Rocket Lab says it has identified the anomaly behind a July 4 in-flight failure of one of its rockets, and the Federal Aviation Administration has cleared the company to resume launches, the company announced July 31. Several minutes after one of the company’s Electron rockets successfully lifted-off from its New Zealand launch pad on July 4, the engine automatically initiated a safe shutdown. It was unable to reach orbit, and—while no one was injured—the incident resulted in the loss of the rocket and the commercial payloads it was carrying. Over the last […]
WASHINGTON – The Pentagon is trying to move ahead with reforms to how it acquires space systems, even as a report outlining significant legislative changes has gotten held up by the Office of Management and Budget. Released in May, the Department of the Air Force report recommends nine specific proposals to improve contracting under the newly established U.S. Space Force. While most of the changes can be undertaken independently by the Department of Defense, three recommendations would require legislative action by Congress. But according to Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acquisition and Integration Shawn Barnes, the report […]
WASHINGTON — More than 120 space specialists, including representatives from the Pentagon, are calling on the United States to develop and promote a “North Star” approach for industrial development to maintain American leadership in space. The push came in a report, “State of the Space Industrial Base 2020,“ following a virtual workshop held in May, which saw leaders from industry, the U.S. government and academia convene virtually to discuss how the United States could maintain long-term economic and military leadership in space. The report includes six recommendations for government action to achieve this goal, as well as four recommendations for industry […]
WASHINGTON – The nominee to lead the nearly year-old U.S. Space Command voiced support for addressing the problem of overclassification in space during a July 28 hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Lt. Gen. James Dickinson, currently serving as deputy commander of SPACECOM, told senators that in his experience, declassification has helped the war fighter on the ground. “In my previous job as commander of U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, I saw firsthand how that overclassification, if you will, was actually making it more difficult for us to provide support to the war fighter,” said Dickinson. “We’ve already […]
Hypergiant Industries is working on building a new 36 satellite constellation with the U.S. Air Force—an updatable system that the company hopes will be used as a low Earth orbit test range. The company first pitched the concept of a constellation of satellites that could update “functionality and mission profiles on the fly based on real-time emergent scenarios and information” in January. Since then, Hypergiant has received funding for their Chameleon Constellation in the form of Air Force Small Business Innovation Research grants, the company told C4ISRNET, and in late June they announced the debut of the first prototype node in […]
The Pentagon is trying to determine how its two newest space entities – Space Command and Space Force – will fit into the Department of Defense’s cyber architecture. There are no plans – or subsequent authorities – for Space Force to provide personnel to the cyber mission force, which feeds up to U.S. Cyber Command, a Space Force spokesperson told C4ISRNET. The way the cyber force is staffed within the Defense Department is that each of the services are responsible for providing a set number of teams – offensive, defensive and intelligence/support teams – to the joint cyber mission force. In […]
U.S. Space Command says that Russia tested an anti-satellite weapon on orbit July 15, continuing a series of aggressive actions that nation has taken in space. According to a July 23 SPACECOM statement, Russian inspector satellite Cosmos 2543 released another object into space in proximity to another Russian satellite, an action inconsistent with its stated purpose. U.S. officials have suggested in the past that such an object could be used as a high-speed projectile weapon to attack other satellites. “The Russian satellite system used to conduct this on-orbit weapons test is the same satellite system that we raised concerns about earlier […]
WASHINGTON — With commerce, travel and international competition in the Arctic region on the rise, the Department of the Air Force will prioritize making investments that will enable greater connectivity among U.S. military assets, the Air Force’s top general said at a roll out of the department’s new Arctic strategy July 21. “Missile warning, space capabilities, air capabilities, how you marry up fifth generation and fourth generation [fighter jets]. It’s more the case as we look at the future of warfare that data will be the currency that we operate on,” said Air Force Gen. Dave Goldfein at a rollout event […]
Earlier this June, the Department of Defense released the unclassified summary of its 2020 Defense Space Strategy, which openly designates space as a “distinct warfighting domain,” a distinction that only recently gained national policy acceptance. With this document, the DoD now has the authorization to begin preparing to deter potential space adversaries, and should deterrence fail, to win a conflict that extends into space. This important update to the near-decade-old National Security Space Strategy follows an April announcement by U.S. Space Command that Russia conducted a direct-ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) missile test that is purportedly capable of destroying low-Earth orbit satellites. This […]
Thousands of members of Air Force space and space systems operations have been selected to begin transfer to the Space Force Sept. 1. The 2,410 airmen selected were part of a larger pool of more than 8,500 volunteers for transfer, many of whom are not in a space operations career field. Volunteers serving in career fields shared by the Air Force and Space Force will undergo their own selection process, scheduled in late July for officers and sometime in the fall for enlisted airmen. Those selected in these boards are expected to begin transfer on Feb. 1, 2021. Career fields shared […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force’s top acquisition official hopes money will materialize for small launch providers whose Defense Production Act contracts were withdrawn earlier this month due to a lack of funding. In mid-June, the Space and Missile Systems Center announced that it would award ride-share contracts to six firms by using funding meant to bolster companies made financially vulnerable by the coronavirus pandemic. However, the government in early July reversed course, recalling the $116 million designated for small launch providers because of “additional small business needs that were generated,” such as other government loan programs, said Will Roper, the […]
The U.S. Space Force squadron charged with operating the military’s most secure communications satellites has received a new advanced terminal that has been in development for years. The new Family of Advanced Beyond-Line-of-Sight Terminal (FAB-T) was installed in late June at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, where the 4th Space Operations Squadron will use it to control protected military communications satellites. “The terminals we were using before couldn’t control some of the more advanced functions on our systems,” Staff Sgt. Edgar Diamond, an officer within the 4th SOPS, said in a press release. “Our old system was not user friendly in […]
Four National Reconnaissance Office payloads will be launched into orbit July 15, continuing the agency’s efforts to leverage the small commercial launch market for its missions. The U.S. Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center announced July 11 that it successfully completed its flight readiness review, putting the launch on track for its 9 a.m. ET window at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. For the National Reconnaissance Office Launch-129 (NROL-129) mission, four payloads built and designed by NRO will be placed on orbit. The agency, which is charged with acquiring and managing the nation’s intelligence […]
With our dependence on space-based systems growing, and threats to them accelerating nearly as fast, the new U.S. Space Force is good for the country. A military service fighting to maintain our vital on-orbit capabilities, even while they are under attack, will be a key member of the joint war-fighting team. Gen. John “Jay” Raymond and his staff are working a wide range of tasks to stand up the Space Force. They include important ongoing responsibilities such as space situational awareness and commercial satellite contracting, as well as planning for and exercising defensive and offensive missions in wartime. However, their efforts […]
The U.S. Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office will stick with Rocket Lab for upcoming launches, despite the failure of the company’s most recent rocket launch to reach orbit. An anomaly occurred during the small launch provider’s most recent mission, resulting in the loss of the rocket and the commercial payloads it was carrying. Rocket Lab noted in a statement that the issue occurred approximately four minutes into the July 4 flight, following a successful liftoff from its New Zealand launch pad as well as a successful first-stage burn and stage separation. No one was injured during the event, and […]
The U.S. Space Force’s stopgap Arctic communications system has passed another major milestone, with it’s Control and Planning Segment (CAPS) ground system passing a critical design review. The Space and Missile Systems Center said officials completed a “delta critical design review” of Enhanced Polar System Recapitalization’s (EPS-R) CAPS design June 25. In a press release, SMC noted the assessment included three months of review by the government and contractor teams, covering areas of risk, software and hardware requirement traceability, testing, performance, cost and schedule. Slated to launch in late 2022, the EPS-R payloads will fill a vital gap in providing secure […]
Less than two weeks after the U.S. Space Force invoked the Defense Production Act to prop up six small launch providers, the awards have been withdrawn. On June 16, the Space and Missile Systems Center announced in a beta.SAM.gov post that it was awarding rideshare contracts to six companies approved by the Industrial Base Council: Aevum, Astra, X-BOW, Rocket Lab USA, Space Vector and VOX Space. Each company was to be awarded two rideshare missions to be conducted over the next 24 months. The value of those contracts was not revealed. But as first reported by SpaceNews, SMC has withdrawn those […]
WASHINGTON — Many of the U.S. Air Force’s space acquisition organizations will be moved into a brand-new “Space Systems Command” to be created under the fledgling Space Force, but it still remains nebulous whether space procurement arms from the Army, Navy and Pentagon will also fall under the command’s purview. On June 29, the Space Force announced that it will be comprised of three field commands: Space Operations Command, Space Training and Readiness Command, and the aforementioned Space Systems Command. Lt. Gen. David Thompson, vice commander of Space Force headquarters, spoke with a handful of reporters about the field-structure decision, which […]
Unlike a May 6 public hearing from the Senate Armed Services Committee, this briefing will feature representatives from the FCC. Source link
“I will say with respect to OneWeb specifically…we continue to work,” the Space Force’s No. 2 officer said Tuesday. Source link