All five contractors — COMSPOC, Kayhan Space, LeoLabs, Slingshot Aerospace, and SpaceNav — received new orders, bringing total “spending over the course of the Consolidated Pathfinder to $15.5 million,” according to an announcement by the Office of Space Commerce.
By Theresa HitchensAI can make logistics data as valuable as intelligence or operational data for mission success
Valuable intelligence insights can be gleaned from logistics or flight-test data when artificial intelligence or machine learning is applied.
The US invitation is significant as it reflects the Pentagon’s desire to more tightly tie its allies into its efforts to deter, and if it comes to it, defend against hostile Chinese and Russian activities
By Christina Mackenzie
Besides tracking adversary satellites, said Maj. Gen. Gregory Gagnon, deputy chief of space operations for intelligence, “sometimes I want to be looking at my own object to see if anything’s going on, right?”
By Theresa Hitchens
The new, tripartite Space Force Generation readiness model will create “a more experienced, capable, and threat-focused crew force,” according to an internal memo obtained by Breaking Defense.
By Theresa Hitchens
“[W]e’ve heard proactively from the Chinese twice on two things they wanted to talk to us about with space safety related issues,” said SPACECOM Commander Gen. Stephen Whiting. “We think that is very positive … ”
By Michael Marrow
The SPACECOM list includes almost $704 million for three unnamed classified programs, as well as $90 million to fund a trio of classified Navy electronic warfare-based “counterspace” capabilities.
By Theresa Hitchens and Valerie Insinna
Lt. Gen. Shawn Bratton, who has been charged to establish the new Space Force Futures Command, said cislunar and dynamic space operations are areas for the command’s scrutiny, since neither have yet proven their ‘military utility.”
By Theresa Hitchens
How to ensure readiness of next-generation defense technology: Solving the issue of massive heat.
High-performance systems generate tremendous amounts of heat that can compromise missions and make high-tech systems less effective in tactical environments. But there is a solution to this modern-age challenge.
The combat squadron arrangement aligns the Space Force with how the Air Force, Army and Navy present and deploy forces to combatant commands, such as Indo-Pacific and European Command, said Lt. Gen. Doug Schiess, head of Space Forces-Space.
By Theresa Hitchens
Lars Hoffman, Blue Origin’s vice president of national security sales, said that a viable commercial market for space mobility and logistics “doesn’t exist right now.”
By Theresa Hitchens
“People need to have a realistic expectation of the demand signal,” said Col. Joyce Bulson, who heads Space Systems Command’s servicing, mobility and logistics program, stressing that the service is “looking to leverage commercial services to the maximum extent possible, so we’re not looking for a significant government investment in bringing these capabilities to bear.”
By Theresa Hitchens
“I would imagine that as Department of Commerce continues to mature this concept, we will definitely want to take advantage of what they’re doing,” said Vice Chief of Space Operations Gen. Michael Guetlein.
By Theresa Hitchens The Mitchell Institute is advocating that from now on Congress bolster the Space Force’s budget by “about $250M a year” and “increase end strength by approximately 200 personnel for the new responsibilities associated with emerging national interests on the moon and the cislunar region.”
By Theresa Hitchens
There’s a whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on in space, from Geneva to Washington to Colorado Springs to Los Angeles.
By Theresa Hitchens
The declaration comes as Congress put a hold on any spending in fiscal year 2024 on a new SPACECOM headquarters building in Colorado Spring, Colo., pending a DoD IQ investigation into President Joe Biden’s decision to keep the HQ there.
By Theresa Hitchens
