WASHINGTON — The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is soliciting input from the space industry on how the United States could rapidly restore critical space capabilities if satellites were disabled or destroyed during a conflict.
DARPA on June 12 released a request for information titled “Rapid Reconstitution of Space Capabilities,” seeking responses by July 8.
In the notice, DARPA’s Strategic Technology Office asks for technical concepts and operational strategies that could quickly restore satellites and other space-based capabilities degraded by anti-satellite weapons, cyberattacks, orbital debris or other disruptions. The agency said its objective is to reestablish critical services on timelines measured in hours to weeks.
The effort reflects Pentagon concerns that space is becoming an increasingly contested domain. U.S. military operations rely heavily on satellites for communications, intelligence collection, missile warning, and positioning, navigation and timing services. Defense officials have repeatedly warned that China and Russia are developing counterspace capabilities ranging from direct-ascent anti-satellite weapons to electronic warfare and cyber systems designed to disrupt space infrastructure.
