Space Science and Technology Research and Development

Abstract

The Space Development Agency (SDA) is established to develop the next generation space architecture to enable U.S. military operations to be responsive to emerging multi-domain threats against our national security. To achieve that goal, the SDA will help inform the Department's decision to develop and implement a proliferated architecture enabled by lower cost, commercially-derived spacecraft and routine space access, shift the Department to a development organization focused on experimentation, prototyping, and accelerated fielding, and change the Department to a concentrated, decoupled structure to generate speed. The SDA will manage, direct, and execute the development of the space capabilities in accordance with DoD’s Space Vision and field space capabilities at speed and scale, with the following goals: • bold breakthroughs designed to obsolesce our competitors, • technology maturation and systems engineering, • lean engineering, manufacturing, and support, • industrial base expansion; streamlined development and acquisition process, and • increased acquisition cooperation with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). The SDA will rapidly deploy critical elements of the next-generation space capabilities, initially focusing on these essential capabilities: • Persistent global surveillance for advanced missile targeting, • Indications, warnings, targeting, and tracking for defense against advanced missile threats, • Alternate position, navigation, and timing (PNT) for a GPS-denied environment, • Global and near-real time space situational awareness, • Development of a deterrent capability, • Responsive, resilient, common ground-based space support infrastructure (e.g., ground stations and launch capability), • Cross-domain, networked, node-independent battle management command, control, and communications (BMC3), including nuclear command, control, and communications (NC3), and, • Highly-scaled, low-latency, persistent, artificial intelligence-enable global surveillance. The establishment of a communications and data transport layer in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) is essential to developing a new, responsive space architecture, and will be SDA’s primary initial focus. The SDA will heavily leverage DARPA’s Blackjack program (PE 0603287E) and its plan to demonstrate a 20-satellite constellation to build this transport layer. The SDA will develop an initial wedge of sub-constellations on this transport layer to provide additional capabilities, such as advanced missile warning. This program element funds efforts to develop and demonstrate a prototype proliferated Low Earth Orbit (pLEO) communications and data transport layer and its sub-constellations in support of the DoD Space Vision.

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Document Details

Document Type
R2 Budgetary Justification
Publication Date
Oct 01, 2020
Source ID
1206310SDA_3_0400_PB_2020
Change Summary Explanation
This is a new start in FY 2020.
Service Agency Name
Space Development Agency

Entities

Organizations

  • Space Development Agency

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Artificial Satellites
  • Earth Orbits
  • Engineering
  • Global Positioning Systems
  • Low Earth Orbits
  • Military Operations
  • National Security
  • Navigation
  • Orbits
  • Satellite Constellations
  • Security
  • Situational Awareness
  • Space Missions
  • Space Sciences
  • Space Situational Awareness
  • Systems Engineering
  • Transport Protocols

Readers

  • Aerospace Engineering.
  • Enterprise Information Systems Architecture and Joint Command Capability Interoperability Support.

Technology Areas

  • AI & ML
  • AI & ML - DoD AI Strategy
  • Space
  • Space - Satellites

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