Name: The Pentagon Is Building a Fleet of Tiny Spy Satellites
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The Pentagon Is Building a Fleet of Tiny Spy Satellites

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The Pentagon’s cutting edge research and development arm is working to develop autonomous fleets of small satellites. Project Blackjack is developing swarms of small satellites that could replace the large, expensive satellites that support U.S. military activities worldwide. Another effort, Pit Boss, will create the autonomous mission management system that keeps the constellation running and the data flowing into the hands of the troops—all without human interaction.One of the most innovative new space technologies in recent years is the idea of mesh networks, orbiting networks of small, inexpensive satellites. The networks are designed to cover an entire region, or planet, with satellites that communicate not just with ground stations but also with one another. The satellites within the network bounce data from one another instead of a ground station, making for a shorter overall travel distance. The system is also capable of self-adjusting to maintain coverage if one satellite goes down. Project Blackjack takes a cue from the civilian space sector, particularly SpaceX’s Starlink. Starlink envisions blanketing low-Earth orbit with thousands of cheap communications satellites capable of providing internet access to any point on Earth (much to the ). The sheer number of satellites ensures that data can be routed quickly through the nearest satellite, and if one satellite goes down the others can pick up the slack.Traditionally, the U.S. has relied on small numbers of extremely capable military satellites. The Pentagon’s fleet of spy satellites, position, navigation, and timing (GPS) satellites, and communications relay satellites are efficient and cost-effective in peacetime but big and vulnerable targets in wartime. Project Blackjack would give the Pentagon the ability to launch constellations of smaller, cheaper satellites to perform the same tasks. A complementary program known as Pit Boss will create the autonomous system to manage the constellation, ensuring a flow of data to troops in the field without the need for humans to manage it.In the event of war, the U.S. military can count on major foreign powers such as Russia or China to take potshots at its satellites. Replacing such large—and expensive—satellites with copies of the originals may not be feasible and would just invite adversaries to shoot them down again. Blackjack could replace a lost satellite with a fleet of smaller satellites that are more difficult to shoot down. The fleet would also be more resilient, capable of working around satellites lost to enemy fire. The agency is considering several types of sensor payloads for the initial demonstration constellation, including radio frequency systems to pass data to ground troops, position, navigation, and timing systems, satellite to satellite communications links, and overhead persistent infrared and electro-optical/infrared spy satellites. Future networks built with Blackjack will probably feature all of these capabilities. DARPA plans to launch the first Blackjack satellites in 2021. The first test, Mandrake 1, will be a CubeSat that will carry supercomputer processing chips. Mandrake 2 will be a pair of satellites capable of exchanging data at broadband speeds. Source:Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowAdvertisement - Continue Reading Below

The Pentagon’s cutting edge research and development arm is working to develop autonomous fleets of small satellites. Project Blackjack is developing swarms of small satellites that could replace the large, expensive satellites that support U.S. military activities worldwide. Another effort, Pit Boss, will create the autonomous mission management system that keeps the constellation running and the data flowing into the hands of the troops—all without human interaction.One of the most innovative new space technologies in recent years is the idea of mesh networks, orbiting networks of small,...

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Kyle Mizokami

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The Pentagon Is Building a Fleet of Tiny Spy Satellites

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