SpaceX Starshield (military satellites)

2024: Creation of a satellite network for the Pentagon for $1.8 billion

SpaceX is building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a secret contract with American intelligence, five sources familiar with the program said in March 2024, indicating deepening ties between billionaire Elon Musk's space company and national security agencies.

The network is being created by SpaceX's Starshield division under a $1.8 billion contract signed in 2021 with the National Intelligence Agency (NRO), the sources said.

If successful, the program will greatly expand the ability of the American government and the military to quickly detect potential targets almost anywhere in the world.

2022: Military version of Starlink satellites announced

On December 5, 2022, SpaceX revealed information about the Starshield project: we are talking about the further development of the Starlink satellite communication system, taking into account the requirements of the US military and government departments.

Until now, Elon Musk's enterprise has not shared details about the Starshield initiative. Therefore, there is not too much information about the scale of the planned space infrastructure and its capabilities at the beginning of December 2022. It is said that Starshield is designed with an eye on three main areas: images, communication resources and putting payloads of different types into orbit.

SpaceX Starshield

Starshield is expected to become some kind of "end-to-end" national security center. SpaceX intends to manufacture a wide range of equipment - from ground antennas to satellites that will be launched into space on the company's own carriers. In addition, SpaceX will be responsible for operating the satellite network. It is also planned to provide connection to the Starshield infrastructure of already operating government and military satellites by using inter-satellite laser communication systems.

While the Starlink platform is designed for consumer and commercial use, Starshield will be applied by the state, says SpaceX.

The Starshield system uses "additional highly reliable cryptographic algorithms to host secret payloads and securely process important data." One of the main users of Starshield, apparently, will be the Pentagon: the US Department of Defense is already actively using the services of SpaceX, and the emergence of a specialized satellite platform Starshield will expand the scope of cooperation. In essence, Starshield represents a step far beyond commercial markets.^[1]

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