Rendering of a Blue Canyon Technologies satellite equipped with Viasat’s Link 16 communications terminal. Credit: Blue Canyon Technologies
The Defense Department’s Space Development Agency just issued a request for support to build 144 spacecraft. The agency’s Tranche 1 Transport Layer is expected to be one of the most complex networks the U.S. government has ever deployed in space.
This layer is the key enabler for moving data across domains for real-time targeting, analysis and decision-making to support warfighter missions. Manufacturing of low Earth orbit (LEO) space vehicles, in some respects, has become commoditized. The differentiation comes from the payload, sensors and communication components that deliver essential data sharing capability.
