Space Mod Initiative

Abstract

The primary objective of SMI is to enable and inform future decisions to maintain and evolve a capable, resilient, and affordable OPIR architecture by maturing technologies and mitigating risk areas to facilitate OPIR modernization within the Department's constrained resources. SMI supports the Program of Record (PoR) by assessing future parts and material obsolescence and designing future space and ground modifications focused on affordability and capability while simultaneously maximizing the effectiveness of existing system data products. SMI funds engineering activities to reduce both production and future system costs through manufacturing and producibility enhancements and through technology insertion. SMI will also mature potential technology upgrades at the component and system level for future space and ground architecture affordability and capability enhancements. The SBIRS OPIR SMI plan includes studies and risk reduction activities to evolve the current PoR SBIRS constellation, reduce production timelines, and reduce recurring production costs. Based on the outcome of these studies and technology development, the Sensor Ground Demonstration will develop capability for current, next generation sensors, processors, and algorithms. SMI funded data exploitation efforts include OPIR mission data processing, data fusion, data dissemination, algorithm development, network connectivity, efficient interfaces and sensor performance assessments to enable greater exploitation of SBIRS PoR and other data sources. SMI exploitation efforts build upon PoR capabilities and inform the PoR decision process. The data exploitation efforts identify affordable, responsive and resilient measures to improve technical intelligence and battlespace awareness processing and data dissemination tools to enhance OPIR support to the warfighters and other data users. The SMI Hosted Payloads and Wide Field of View (WFOV) Testbed activities explore technology maturation, qualification of new components, and subsystem/component prototyping to evolve the OPIR architecture. Hosted Payloads and WFOV Testbeds support maturation of mission data processing algorithms for tactical and strategic applications which are critical demonstration efforts to enhance PoR capabilities and to reduce program risks for future OPIR systems, whether new systems or evolutions of the PoR. Collection of on-orbit WFOV data is critical to develop algorithms to process large data sets generated by emerging large format focal planes and to reduce risk for possible SBIRS follow-on architectures. SBIRS Enterprise Ground Services (EGS) infrastructure modernization efforts under SMI will introduce Telemetry, Tracking and Command systems (TT&C) and Ground Control automation, Future Operationally Resilient Ground Evolution (FORGE) mission data processing as well as competition into SBIRS Ground with an emphasis to on-ramp to EGS as soon as practical. SMI activities are balanced and phased to enable an expanded tradespace and improve the competitive environment.

Document Details

• Document Type: Project
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2018
• Source ID: 657009_1206441F_5_3600_PB_2018

Tags

Readers

• Aerospace Engineering.
• Distributed Systems and Data Platform Development

Technology Areas

• Space
• Space - Satellites