SpaceX's Starshield unit has had a classified contract with the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) since 2021 to build a network of “hundreds” of spy satellites for the agency. technology/space/musks-spacex-is-building-spy-satellite-network-us-intelligence-agency-sources-2024-03-16/”>Reuters today's reportsciting anonymous sources “familiar with the program.”
TO tech/musks-spacex-forges-tighter-links-with-u-s-spy-and-military-agencies-512399bd?page=1″>Wall Street Journal report in February listed a classified SpaceX contract worth $1.8 billion with a then-unnamed government agency. Now Reuters has added a name, and that is to build a network of “hundreds of satellites with Earth imaging capabilities that can operate as a swarm in low orbits.”
The report does not say when the network will be operational or what other companies are involved. It mentions that a US database of space objects lists satellites deployed by SpaceX that the company and the government have not recognized and cites sources confirming that those objects are Starshield prototypes.
According ReutersIf the NRO contract is a success, it “would significantly improve the U.S. government and military’s ability to quickly detect potential targets almost anywhere in the world.”
While an NRO spokesperson reportedly declined to comment on Reuters After discovering the findings about SpaceX's involvement, he confirmed to the outlet that he is working to develop “the most capable, diverse and resilient space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance system the world has ever seen.”
