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MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Logistics, from satellite life extension to in-space assembly, will become common elements of future military operations, according to speakers at the MilSat Symposium here.
“The way the space domain is evolving is increasingly looking like the air domain,” said Momentus CEO John Rood, former U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy. “You’re going to see the equivalent of air-to-air refueling, reconnaissance and inspection.”
The U.S. Air Force relies on a range of aircraft from expensive fighters to low-cost drones. In addition, air warfare has evolved to rely on in-flight refueling and global cargo delivery.
“The domain of operations is increasingly shifting to Earth orbit but also higher altitudes because there are organizations around the world that are looking at how to exploit those advantages,” Rood said.
Life Extension
SpaceLogistics, a Northrop Grumman subsidiary, is focused on extending the life of satellites in addition to upgrading spacecraft or removing them from orbit.
“Logistics is absolutely critical to our future protection in space,” said SpaceLogistics Vice President Joe Anderson. “If you look at other domains, land, sea and air, support and maintenance of our assets is fundamental. Space has been the one domain where all our money is spent on the asset, and there’s been essentially zero money spent on support and maintenance.”
Satellite life extension has been adopted on the commercial side first. Intelsat hired SpaceLogistics to extend the life of two geostationary communications satellites. And SpaceLogistics’ multi-armed Mission Robotic Vehicle is set to launch in early 2026.
High and Low-Cost Satellites
Companies offering life-extension and refueling services focus on geostationary satellites which often cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Far less expensive spacecraft destined for low-Earth orbit tend to be replaced within a few years.
“When you think about equipping the warfighter, you have to know what you can provide on that spectrum” from exquisite to low-cost capabilities, said Max Holliday, CEO of EarthTraq Corp., a Silicon Valley asset-tracking and alternative positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) startup.
EarthTraq plans to offer inexpensive satellites to offer PNT that is complementary to GPS.
“We provide a service that is able to restore PNT in contested environments,” Holliday said. “We want to be able to toss up the spacecraft and they do their job. No ground-based commissioning and handling necessary.”
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