SpaceX awarded $2.9B contract for satellite network backbone
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By
Ross Wilkers
The company is tasked with delivering a prototype by the end of 2027.
Space Force has awarded a $2.9 billion contract to SpaceX for satellites that can act as the backhaul data layer of a network for transporting military data while operating in low-Earth orbit.
In the telecommunications industry, backhaul refers to the immediate network segment that connects localized edge networks to the central core network. The idea is to aggregate and move data between end-user devices and central servers in order to connect local traffic to the broader network.
For the Space Data Network Backbone effort, SpaceX will build a network of optically-interconnected satellites that can transport military data through space as opposed to using ground-based systems like terrestrial systems or stations.
Space Force has structured the contract as an Other Transaction Authority agreement, under which SpaceX is tasked with delivering a prototype by the end of 2027.
“The SDN Backbone supports the broader SDN, which acts as a core communications layer for the USSF warfighting systems, ensuring our sensors and shooters are connected continuously, globally and securely,” Space Force Col. Ryan Frazier, acting portfolio acquisition executive for space-based sensing and targeting, said in a release Tuesday.
Space Force envisions the broader Space Data Network as a hybrid architecture of military and commercial satellites that can provide communications pathways for data involving missile warning and tracking functions, among others.
The service branch is working to accomplish that effort through an SDM consortium comprising multiple companies with the intention of expanding the pool over the summer.
“Our acquisition strategy is designed to foster competition and broaden our industrial base,” said Space Force Lt. Col. Jeffrey Fry, SDN Backbone system program manager. “We aren’t trading speed for scale; we are demanding both. By using rapid prototyping and Other Transaction Authorities, we are ensuring our advanced solutions are integrated and delivered to the warfighter as fast as possible.”
For SpaceX, its capture of the OTA comes as the Elon Musk-owned company prepares to undertake what is widely regarded as the largest-ever initial public offering in the history of the public markets.