US Space Force awards SpaceX $2.29B for satellite network

The U.S. Space Force has awarded SpaceX a $2.29 billion contract to build a secure, high-speed satellite communications network for global military operations. The service announced the fixed-price agreement on Tuesday.

The contract is for the development of the Space Data Network Backbone, a resilient architecture designed to provide high-capacity, low-latency data transport. A key function of the network will be to enable near real-time communication between missile warning and tracking sensors and interceptors. Military officials have described this capability as foundational to the Golden Dome missile defense initiative.

Space Force Colonel Ryan Frazier, the acting portfolio acquisition executive overseeing the program, said the project leverages the best of commercial innovation and delivers a strong foundation for the mission set, calling it a huge benefit and enabler for warfighters.

The SDN Backbone will be a proliferated low Earth orbit satellite constellation, expanding a mesh of satellites to provide worldwide communication services. According to the Pentagon, it will work alongside the existing Space Development Agency’s Transport Layer to form a unified architecture...