Navy Multiband Terminal (NMT)

Abstract

The Navy Multiband Terminal (NMT) Program is the required Navy component to the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) Program for enhancing protected and survivable satellite communications to Naval forces. Although development of the NMT terminal is complete, software and hardware upgrade development is ongoing to provide enhanced capabilities to the fleet. The NMT system provides an increase in single service capability from 1.5 Megabits per second (Mbps) to 8 Mbps, increases the number of coverage areas, and retains Anti-Jam/Low Probability of Intercept (AJ/LPI) protection characteristics. It is compatible with legacy Navy Low Data Rate/Medium Data Rate (LDR/MDR) terminals and will sustain the Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) architecture by providing connectivity across the spectrum of mission areas, to include land, air and naval warfare, special operations, strategic defense, theater missile defense, and space operations and intelligence. The NMT system replenishes and improves on Navy Military Strategic, Tactical & Relay System (MILSTAR), Defense Satellite Communications System (DSCS), Wideband Global Satellite (WGS), and Global Broadcast Service (GBS) terminal capabilities. The new system equips warfighters with assured, jam resistant, secure communications as described in both the joint AEHF Satellite Communications System and the WGS Operational Requirement Documents (ORD). Mission requirements specific to Navy operations, including threat levels and scenarios, are contained in the ORD. The NMT provides multiband Satellite Communications (SATCOM) capability for ship, submarine, and protected MILSATCOM for shore sites. The Wideband Anti-Jam Modem System (WAMS) is a Navy technology upgrade that enhances communication capability of shipboard and submarine NMTs by providing wideband Anti-Jam (AJ) Satellite Communication throughput over Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS). WAMS is a major contributor in supporting the National Defense Strategy by investing in resilience to provide assured communications capabilities. WAMS enables space segment Anti Jam (AJ) diversity (EHF/AEHF and WGS), thus enabling NMT ships and submarines equipped with the modem to operate in wideband links closer to threat jammers. The United States USAF (USAF) Protected Tactical Enterprise Service (PTES) program will provide the ground hub component of the WAMS communication system. This PTES joint hub will serve as a DoD enterprise service ground solution for the use of the Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW) of SATCOM communications and introduces a Network Operations Without Shore (NOWS) capability. The NOWS capability will use the Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) waveform that provides uninterrupted communication in case of loss of shore hub connectivity. PTW is a Frequency Hopped Spread Spectrum (FHSS) waveform that provides high data rates in a benign environment and anti-jam protection to meet contested data rate requirements. High data rate anti-jam capability is enabled via the Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW) and low data rate anti-jam capability is provided via the Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) waveform. These two waveforms are designed to operate over the Wideband Global SATCOM system as well as other transponded satellites, and are also forward compatible with the on-board processing capabilities of the future Protected Tactical Satellites (PTS). WAMS enables the use of WGS X and Ka-band resources to assure access to mission critical communications to provide Resilient Command and Control (RC2) capabilities in contested/degraded environments, formerly known as Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2AD). The use of WAMS PTW on WGS will augment AEHF Extended Data Rate (XDR) services to provide the information throughput capacity necessary to support critical Command and Control capability. Navy Global Broadcast System (GBS) is a member of the larger Joint Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I)program, providing high speed (up to 45 Mbps per transponder)/large volume information/data delivery to forces afloat, ashore, and Naval Special Warfare Command. Leveraging the NMT antenna, GBS provides a one-way broadcast to Naval maritime forces across the spectrum of mission areas, to include land, air and naval warfare, special operations, strategic nuclear operations, strategic defense, theater missile defense, and space operations and intelligence in support of RC2. GBS Transmission Security (TRANSEC) is an operational requirement from the Joint GBS ORD and provides robust datalink protection of both uplink and downlink for the GBS broadcast. GBS is evaluating Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW) solutions to meet the TRANSEC mandate. The Air Force & Army Anti-Jam Modem (A3M) and the WAMS are PTW solutions that are under consideration. Navy GBS will require extensive development activities for the new PTW modem solution and must conduct a Follow-On Test & Evaluation (FOT&E) with Joint Services. Overall program efforts include technology insertion studies required to support satellite communications.

Document Details

• Document Type: Project
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2022
• Source ID: 0728_0303109N_7_1319_PB_2022

Tags

Readers

• Tactical Satellite Communications Systems Engineering.

Technology Areas

• Fully Networked C3
• Fully Networked C3 - Command and Control
• Space
• Space - Satellites