{"id":18215,"date":"2018-12-20T17:22:37","date_gmt":"2018-12-20T09:22:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spacex-wins-28-7m-contract-from-air-force-for-data-connectivity-research\/"},"modified":"2018-12-20T17:22:37","modified_gmt":"2018-12-20T09:22:37","slug":"spacex-wins-28-7m-contract-from-air-force-for-data-connectivity-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spacex-wins-28-7m-contract-from-air-force-for-data-connectivity-research\/","title":{"rendered":"SpaceX wins $28.7M contract from Air Force for data connectivity research"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_316083\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-316083\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-316083\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/170308-constel-patentyogi-630x497.jpg\" alt=\"Satellite arrangement\" width=\"630\" height=\"497\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/170308-constel-patentyogi-630x497.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/170308-constel-patentyogi-768x605.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/170308-constel-patentyogi.jpg 1035w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-316083\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">SpaceX\u2019s plan for global broadband satellite coverage calls for using sets of satellites orbiting at different altitudes. (PatentYogi via YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>SpaceX has won a $28.7 million fixed-price contract from the Air Force Research Laboratory for experiments in data connectivity involving ground sites, aircraft and space assets&nbsp;\u2014 a project that could give a boost to the company\u2019s Starlink broadband satellite service.<\/p>\n<p>The contract was awarded on Wednesday, with work due to be completed by mid-2021.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s part of a program called Defense Experimentation Using Commercial Space Internet, or DEUCSI, which aims to provide the Air Force with the ability to communicate via multiple satellite internet services, using common hardware elements.<\/p>\n<p>That strategy would make it possible for the Air Force to switch data service providers easily&nbsp;\u2014 for example, if new providers decide to enter the market, or if existing providers decide to leave it.<\/p>\n<p>There are also tactical reasons for switchability. \u201cAn Air Force pilot using the space internet may wish to change vendors in flight to access a more favorable spectrum or geometry,\u201d the project\u2019s managers said in one of their calls for proposals.<\/p>\n<p>The award makes clear that the U.S. military is interested in taking advantage of the global broadband access that Starlink and other satellite constellations in low Earth orbit could provide. In the past, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and other executives have talked more about the civilian market&nbsp;\u2014 that is, the idea that satellite constellations could benefit billions of people around the world who don\u2019t currently have affordable, reliable broadband access.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Is There Space for 12,000 More Satellites Up There?\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BMoH_zr2y8A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\" data-ratio=\"0.5625\" data-width=\"800\" data-height=\"450\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0px; width: 800px; height: 450px;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>SpaceX\u2019s involvement would start with connectivity demonstrations involving aircraft and Air Force ground sites. Phase 2 would add two other types of experiments: commercial space-to-space data relay service and mobile connectivity directly from a space-based network to aircraft.<\/p>\n<p>Such experiments mesh well with SpaceX\u2019s Starlink development effort, which calls for putting as many as 12,000 satellites in low Earth orbit. The first satellites could be launched next year, and SpaceX has said its initial data network could be operational in the 2020-2021 time frame.<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX\u2019s facilities in Redmond, Wash., have played a lead role in preparing for Starlink, and that operation recently went through a reorganization to accelerate progress. However, the Air Force\u2019s contract notice specifies that the work will be performed in Hawthorne, Calif., where SpaceX has its headquarters.<\/p>\n<p>The Air Force said it was setting aside $19.1 million from its current fiscal 2019 budget for research, development, test and evaluation. The Air Force Research Laboratory, based at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, is the contracting authority.<\/p>\n<p>SpaceX isn\u2019t the only company that figures in the Pentagon\u2019s plans to take advantage of technologies developed for commercial satellite constellations. Last month, Telesat Canada said it won a $2.8 million contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to study the use of commercially built satellites in an experimental low-Earth-orbit constellation known as Blackjack.<\/p>\n<p>Space News reported that DARPA awarded similar contracts to Airbus Defense and Space and to Colorado-based Blue Canyon Technologies \u2014 valued at $2.9 million and $1.5 million, respectively. The three awards are just the start of what\u2019s expected to be a $117.5 million program, with a 20-satellite prototype network to be deployed by 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Telesat is developing a low-Earth-orbit constellation for global broadband services, with the target of going operational with about 120 satellites in 2021. Airbus Defense and Space, meanwhile, is a satellite manufacturing partner in the international OneWeb consortium, which aims to start launching satellites next year and provide broadband access by as early as 2020.<\/p>\n<p><em>Hat tip to Ars Technica\u2019s Eric Berger and r\/SpaceX on Reddit.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SpaceX\u2019s plan for global broadband satellite coverage calls for using sets of satellites orbiting at different altitudes. (PatentYogi via YouTube) SpaceX has won a $28.7 million fixed-price contract from the Air Force Research Laboratory for experiments in data connectivity involving ground sites, aircraft and space assets&nbsp;\u2014 a project that could give a boost to the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[437,252,439,20,316,440],"class_list":["post-18215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-air-force","tag-broadband","tag-military","tag-satellite","tag-spacex","tag-starlink"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18215"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18215"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18215\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18215"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18215"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18215"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}