La Fuerza Espacial de EE UU ha publicado una convocatoria para proveedores de sat\u00e9lites de comunicaciones peque\u00f1os y maniobrables en \u00f3rbita terrestre geosincr\u00f3nica. El general Jason Cothern, adjunto del Comando de Sistemas Espaciales, dijo que el servicio busca “incorporar contratos basados en capacidades para incluir servicios emergentes p-LEO, banda X comercial, espacio-celular y peque\u00f1os sat\u00e9lites GEO maniobrables, tratando de mantenerse a la vanguardia”. de la amenaza y tambi\u00e9n aprovechando las capacidades comerciales a medida que surjan”.<\/p>\n
MilSat Symposium 2023 \u2014 The Space Force\u2019s Commercial Satellite Communications Office (CSCO) has plans to set up in the near future new pools of providers using a variety of new types of constellations \u2014 starting with small, maneuvering satellites in geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO), according to service officials and notices.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurrently, CSCO [pronounced \u2018cisco\u2019] runs over 70 contracts valued at $3.6 billion dollars,\u201d Brig. Gen. Jason Cothern, deputy head of Space Systems Command, told the MilSat Symposium here in Mountain View, Calif., on Thursday.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd they\u2019re expanding to incorporate capability-based contracts to include emerging p-LEO [proliferated low Earth orbit] services, commercial X-band,\u00a0space-to-cellular<\/a>\u00a0and small maneuverable GEO satellites, again, trying to stay ahead of the threat and also taking advantage of the commercial capabilities as they arise,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n CSCO\u00a0in July<\/a>\u00a0issued a set of 16 five-year indefinite delivery\/indefinite quantity (ID\/IQ) contracts for acquisition of\u00a0services<\/a>\u00a0from commercial operators of p-LEO constellations, later adding three more providers to the pool. As of now, only one firm \u2014 SpaceX with its Starshield satellites, a military version of its gigantic Starlink constellation \u2014 has won a tasking order under the ID\/IQ, but at least one other is expected soon.<\/p>\n And\u00a0on Wednesday<\/a>\u00a0CSCO released a \u201csources sought\u201d solicitation to industry for what are often called \u201cmicro-GEO\u201d satellites.<\/p>\n \u201cThe SSC CSCO is seeking information for potential sources to provide support for a new class of commercially offered satellite communication services supported by GEO satellites utilizing a constellation of small satellites capable of maneuvering between\u00a0International Telecommunication Union<\/a>\u00a0(ITU) assigned orbital slots in the GEO arc,\u201d the solicitation says. \u201cIncreased maneuverability utilizing decentralized and spatially dispersed small satellites is imperative for the future resilience of both the constellation and the communications support for any user without impact to existing user equipment and gateways.\u201d<\/p>\n Clare Hopper, CSCO director, told the Milsat audience during a Thursday panel discussion that following industry responses to the micro-GEO solicitation, which are due on Nov. 16, her office is \u201clooking to put in place a similar IDIQ contract that provides access to those satellites, either as individual service offerings or giving the government the ability to effectively acquire our own constellation through unique leasing arrangement.\u201d<\/p>\n She explained that while the Defense Department has \u201cbecome really good buyers\u201d of commercial satellite communications (SATCOM), the time has come for it to \u201cbecome an investor.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think what we need to do is expand our relationship with industry to replicate some of the arrangements that exist in the terrestrial fiber optic realm. That includes \u2018indefeasible right of use\u2019 agreements. We\u2019ve been talking about this for many years. These instruments convey over the rights of ownership without actually owning the underlying space asset,\u201d Hopper said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we can replicate that model for commercial SATCOM and really put in place powerful access to capabilities under really unique terms and conditions that will afford the military some level of control and decision-making that they don\u2019t have today as merely a buyer of a service-level agreement,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Hopper elaborated that the next step for CSCO down this path to more directly acquiring commercial capabilities will be an \u201canticipated\u201d request for information to providers of \u201cdirect-to-cellular\u201d SATCOM.<\/p>\n