National Defense Space Architecture (NDSA), Systems, Technologies, and Emerging Capabilities (STEC)

SDA is responsible for the development, fielding, and operation of the Department’s future threat-driven space architecture and accelerating the development and fielding of new military space capabilities necessary to ensure U.S. technological and military advantage in space for national defense. To achieve this mission, SDA is responsible for unifying and integrating next-generation space capabilities to deliver the National Defense Space Architecture (NDSA), a resilient military sensing and data transport capability via a proliferated space architecture primarily in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). SDA will not necessarily develop and field all capabilities of the NDSA but rather orchestrate those efforts across DoD and fill in gaps in capabilities while providing the integrated architecture.

Initially the NDSA is comprised of the following capability layers, addressing the critical priorities for space identified within the DoD Space Vision:

• Transport Layer, to provide assured, resilient, low-latency military data and communications connectivity worldwide to the full range of warfighter platforms; Battle Management Layer, to provide architecture tasking, mission command and control, and data dissemination to support time-sensitive kill chain closure at campaign scales;
• Tracking Layer, to provide global indications, warning, tracking, and targeting of advanced missile threats, including hypersonic missile systems;
• Custody Layer, to provide 24x7, all-weather custody of time-sensitive, left-of-launch surface mobile targets (e.g., to support beyond line-of-sight targeting for advanced missiles);
• Navigation Layer, to provide alternate positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) for Global Positioning System (GPS)-denied environments;
• Support Layer, to enable ground and launch segments to support a responsive space architecture.

While SDA primarily seeks to acquire mature technologies that can be rapidly fielded to address pressing warfighter capability needs, SDA can also make limited but pivotal investments in research and development activities, particularly when the return on those investments can be leveraged in future acquisitions. Through this BAA, SDA specifically seeks architecture concepts, strategic assessments and evaluations, systems, technologies, and emerging warfighting capabilities that:

• Enable leap-ahead improvements for future tranches of currently planned NDSA capability layers identified above
• Enable new capability layers to address other emerging or evolving warfighters needs