U.S. Defense Program Hunts for Next-Gen Space Monitoring Tech!

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By Rick Adams

13, Sep 2024

As the competition increases in the space race and tensions in global politics are growing, the Ministry of Defense needs tools to improve its awareness of actions in outer space.

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The Space Security and Defense Program (SSDP), an interdepartmental project of the Department of Defense and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, issued a request for information (RFI) on the developments in the field of space domain awareness on September 11. 

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The SSDP is tasked with evaluating threats to U.S. space assets and the acquisition of information on technologies for the protection of U.S. systems.

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The term SDA stands for space domain awareness, which is defined as the capability to acquire the knowledge and understanding of the large amount of man-made objects within the Earth's orbits, including satellites and other space debris.

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The RFI is a more formal approach of contracting authorities in terms of getting ideas before the contracts are issued. Military leaders have long claimed that the space environment is becoming congested and contested, implying that there is a need to enhance the space surveillance tools. 

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The RFI particularly wants “well-established and advanced SDA concepts that include great support to the operations, identification of man-made objects, intelligence, and monitoring of the environment.”

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Its release comes after retired Lt. Gen. John Shaw, a former director of operations at the USPACOM and a former deputy commander at U. S. Space Command, criticized the U. S. military as lethargic to the changes in the space environment. 

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Shaw said at the same time it continues to be on steady identification of space objects rather than on fast tracking of hard-to-find targets in irrational orbits where the enemy may place spacecraft to attack US satellites.

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The SSDP seeks “proven and innovative SDA concepts for use between 2030 and 2040” and wants to know about the “industry’s capabilities and services available at the scale and speed that is required in order to defeat threats in a dynamic and proliferated environment,” as indicated in Figure 2.

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