Father
Professional
- Messages
- 2,602
- Reaction score
- 761
- Points
- 113
A satellite armada developed by SpaceX and Northrop Grumman will secretly spy on the entire planet.
Northrop Grumman, together with SpaceX actively working on a secret spy satellite project that has already begun taking high-quality images of the Earth. The project is reportedly aimed at improving the U.S. government's ability to track its military and intelligence targets from low-Earth orbits.
The inclusion of Northrop Grumman in this project underscores the desire of the US authorities to prevent a single contractor from monopolizing the management of a sensitive intelligence program.
It is not yet clear whether other contractors are involved in the project or whether they are planned to be included in the future. Officials at Northrop Grumman and SpaceX, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, declined to comment.
It is known that Northrop Grumman has previously supplied sensors for some SpaceX satellites. It is expected that in the coming years, Northrop Grumman's own facilities will install these same sensors on at least 50 SpaceX satellites, as well as their subsequent testing.
In March last year, it became known that the National Reconnaissance Satellite Office (NRO) in 2021 signed a contract with SpaceX in the amount of $ 1.8 billion. The project provides for the creation of an extensive network of hundreds of satellites.
So far, SpaceX has launched about a dozen prototypes and has already started providing test images for the NRO. This data can significantly improve the resolution of images compared to most of the current espionage systems of the US government.
It is also noted that the project is aimed at reducing the risks associated with the use of drones and reconnaissance aircraft in the airspace of other countries, especially in conflict zones. Placing an image acquisition system in Earth orbit significantly reduces these risks.
The project was SpaceX's first known engagement in the field of intelligence services that have traditionally been run by the state and established space contractors. Since SpaceX was founded more than two decades ago, the company has avoided cooperation with traditional aerospace and defense companies, criticizing them for bureaucracy and slowness, but now the company's management seems to have changed its mind.
Northrop Grumman, together with SpaceX actively working on a secret spy satellite project that has already begun taking high-quality images of the Earth. The project is reportedly aimed at improving the U.S. government's ability to track its military and intelligence targets from low-Earth orbits.
The inclusion of Northrop Grumman in this project underscores the desire of the US authorities to prevent a single contractor from monopolizing the management of a sensitive intelligence program.
It is not yet clear whether other contractors are involved in the project or whether they are planned to be included in the future. Officials at Northrop Grumman and SpaceX, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, declined to comment.
It is known that Northrop Grumman has previously supplied sensors for some SpaceX satellites. It is expected that in the coming years, Northrop Grumman's own facilities will install these same sensors on at least 50 SpaceX satellites, as well as their subsequent testing.
In March last year, it became known that the National Reconnaissance Satellite Office (NRO) in 2021 signed a contract with SpaceX in the amount of $ 1.8 billion. The project provides for the creation of an extensive network of hundreds of satellites.
So far, SpaceX has launched about a dozen prototypes and has already started providing test images for the NRO. This data can significantly improve the resolution of images compared to most of the current espionage systems of the US government.
It is also noted that the project is aimed at reducing the risks associated with the use of drones and reconnaissance aircraft in the airspace of other countries, especially in conflict zones. Placing an image acquisition system in Earth orbit significantly reduces these risks.
The project was SpaceX's first known engagement in the field of intelligence services that have traditionally been run by the state and established space contractors. Since SpaceX was founded more than two decades ago, the company has avoided cooperation with traditional aerospace and defense companies, criticizing them for bureaucracy and slowness, but now the company's management seems to have changed its mind.
