Surveillance Autonomous Target Keeping Space Program.
BAE Systems
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded BAE Systems’ FAST LabsTM research and development organization a $7 million contract for the Autonomous Space Targeting Surveillance Program.
Traditional intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) in space can be siloed, labor intensive, and incapable of dynamic re-evaluation quickly enough to take advantage of new space systems. To address this, DARPA, the US Space Force and the Space Development Agency are developing satellite constellations to enhance the tactical relevance of US space systems.
The proliferating low-Earth orbit satellite constellations significantly expand on-orbit ISR capabilities. The DARPA Oversight program will focus on creating an autonomous system that maintains constant “guarding” of large numbers of assets in new, diverse constellations. Under the terms of the program, the technology will be deployed on both tactical edge satellites and ground stations.
“Rapidly advancing close-competitor capabilities are driving the need for additional remote tracking at increased scale and timeliness,” said Dr. John Grimes, director of small satellites at BAE Systems’ FAST Labs. “To meet this requirement, our team includes technical expertise in autonomy, space processing, ISR systems, tactical software development, systems integration and architecture, and mission focus.”
Work on the program, which is part of BAE Systems’ portfolio of autonomous technologies, includes collaboration with subcontractors OmniTek and AIMdin, Inc.
Contacts
Paul Roberts, BAE Systems
Cell: 603-521-2381
[email protected]