presented by
Future inevitability of quantum computers is a security problem today

Future inevitability of quantum computers is a security problem today
Future inevitability of quantum computers is a security problem today

‘Store Now, Decrypt Later’ attacks must be thwarted now with Zero Trust cybersecurity.

Rocket Cargo is go! Air Force’s experimental resupply program moves closer to the launch pad

Rocket Cargo is go! Air Force’s experimental resupply program moves closer to the launch pad
Rocket Cargo is go! Air Force’s experimental resupply program moves closer to the launch pad

The investment in transitioning Rocket Cargo “is focused on utilizing vehicles that traverse from or through space to transport DoD materiel anywhere around the world within tactically responsive timelines,” the Space Force’s FY25 budget request says.

New Space Force tech accelerator focused on space domain awareness software

New Space Force tech accelerator focused on space domain awareness software
New Space Force tech accelerator focused on space domain awareness software

The goal of the accelerator is to bring industry, government and academia together to integrate SDA computer systems to “fully leverage” data from myriad sources across the Defense Department, the Intelligence Community, other government agencies, allies and commercial firms — a seemingly unsolvable problem that has bedeviled the Pentagon for decades. 

Space Force, AFRL ink first non-US research agreements with Indian AI, sensor firms

Space Force, AFRL ink first non-US research agreements with Indian AI, sensor firms
Space Force, AFRL ink first non-US research agreements with Indian AI, sensor firms

While this may be the first CRADA’s between the two Indian space startups and the Space Force, neither company is a stranger to the US space market ecosystem.

Hyperspace Challenge: 6 winners, with focus on novel ‘mobility’ tech for SPACECOM

Hyperspace Challenge: 6 winners, with focus on novel ‘mobility’ tech for SPACECOM
Hyperspace Challenge: 6 winners, with focus on novel ‘mobility’ tech for SPACECOM

“Right now, the position of my combatant commander is: ‘I wanna move, I wanna refuel, I wanna have life-extension and I wanna live’,” SpRCO Director Kelly Hammett told Breaking Defense.

AFRL picks 3 contractors for JETSON effort to develop fission powered spacecraft

AFRL picks 3 contractors for JETSON effort to develop fission powered spacecraft
AFRL picks 3 contractors for JETSON effort to develop fission powered spacecraft

The Space Force sees nuclear fission reactors as a solution to replace solar panels for operations in the darkness of deep space.

Italian team wins Space Force’s first on-orbit Hack-A-Sat contest

Italian team wins Space Force’s first on-orbit Hack-A-Sat contest
Italian team wins Space Force’s first on-orbit Hack-A-Sat contest

The five finalists in the Hack-A-Sat 4 contest competed in nine different challenges, seven of them involving hacking into the Moonlighter CubeSat built by The Aerospace Corporation and Space Systems Command as a on-orbit cybersecurity testbed.

Orbital Sidekick: Taking hyperspectral imaging from the garage to the Pentagon

Orbital Sidekick: Taking hyperspectral imaging from the garage to the Pentagon
Orbital Sidekick: Taking hyperspectral imaging from the garage to the Pentagon

“Hyperspectral is kind of starting to have its moment in the sun, so to speak,” said Dan Katz, CEO and co-founder of Orbital Sidekick.

AFRL taps Ursa Major for hypersonic, space launch engines

AFRL taps Ursa Major for hypersonic, space launch engines
AFRL taps Ursa Major for hypersonic, space launch engines

Responsive launch is enabled by the fact that Draper’s hydrogen peroxide fuel is easily storable, Ursa Major CEO Joe Laurienti told Breaking Defense, which cuts down prelaunch logistics — whereas other highly toxic liquid fuels often used to provide the high thrust needed for a missile to reach hypersonic speeds (Mach 5 and above) require special handling.

Startup Applied Intuition wins AFWERX contract for ‘virtual sensor optimization’

Startup Applied Intuition wins AFWERX contract for ‘virtual sensor optimization’
Startup Applied Intuition wins AFWERX contract for ‘virtual sensor optimization’

The company will use its sensor simulation software product Spectral, which can be used to “place sensors anywhere on a platform to visualize the sensor field of view, occlusion, and coverage,” Nicholas Pisciotta told Breaking Defense ahead of the contract announcement. 

Lockheed Martin demos on-orbit maneuvering for AFRL, with sat servicing in mind

Lockheed Martin demos on-orbit maneuvering for AFRL, with sat servicing in mind
Lockheed Martin demos on-orbit maneuvering for AFRL, with sat servicing in mind

“The closest proximity that we have imagery of was 400 meters” taken during a pass on Feb. 28, said Karla Brown, program manager for the demonstration satellites at Lockheed Martin Space. “So we hope, with two viable assets up there, to continue the demonstration to get even closer and continue to prove out those algorithms.”

presented by
Defending every domain from the highest domain

Defending every domain from the highest domain
Defending every domain from the highest domain

High-value assets in space means positioning both exquisite payloads and quick-react, short-term, inexpensive small sats across orbital regimes to accomplish specific missions.

General Atomics’ Gambit moves to flight testing under AFRL’s autonomous drone project

General Atomics’ Gambit moves to flight testing under AFRL’s autonomous drone project
General Atomics’ Gambit moves to flight testing under AFRL’s autonomous drone project

AFRL is “projecting first flight in first half of FY24 [fiscal 2024],” Trenton White, OBSS program manager, told Breaking Defense.

DIU asks industry for help getting hypersonic test jet closer to lift off

DIU asks industry for help getting hypersonic test jet closer to lift off
DIU asks industry for help getting hypersonic test jet closer to lift off

DIU is now seeking commercial materials and systems, such as for propulsion and alternative navigation, to test on its planned hypersonic test jet.