Rapid Reconstitution of Space Capabilities
Closed Special Notice Posted
- Solicitation number
- DARPA-SN-26-42
- Agency
- Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Department of Defense
- Responses due
- Set-aside
- No set-aside
Opportunity facts
- NAICS code
- 541715 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology)
- Points of contact
Notice details come from SAM.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency issued a Request for Information on rapid reconstitution of space capabilities with responses due by 5:00 PM ET on July 8, 2026. DARPA's Strategic Technology Office seeks technical solutions and operational concepts to enable rapid restoration of critical space services following anti-satellite attacks, debris collisions, or capacity surges on tactical timelines of hours to weeks. The RFI addresses contested space environments where adversaries employ direct-attack anti-satellite weapons, jamming, spoofing, and cyberattacks against U.S. space assets that support communications, positioning, navigation, timing, and intelligence collection.
Responses should address one or more of four technical areas: space vehicle satellite bus and payload; launch vehicle; space vehicle–launch vehicle integration; and concept of operations. Topics of interest include spacecraft modularity and scalability, plug-and-play components, rapid satellite manufacturing, on-orbit assembly, reconfigurable and software-defined satellites, multifunctional payloads, radiation-hardened electronics, very low earth orbit operations, spacecraft survivability, cost-effective spacecraft for large-scale constellations, and supply chain optimization. Submissions must not exceed eight pages—one cover sheet, up to five pages of technical description with required white space chart comparing proposed technologies against existing solutions, and up to two pages of bibliography—in 12-point font, single-spaced, Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF format. Submit to DARPA-SN-26-42@darpa.mil. Responses are for information and planning purposes only; DARPA assumes no obligation to fund or issue formal solicitation. No reimbursement is provided for response costs.
Notice text
The United States leverages space assets and the services they provide for economic prosperity, weather forecasting, scientific discovery, critical infrastructure, and national security. Conversely, other nations seek to position themselves as leading space powers while undermining the stability and tranquility that allows space to benefit all nations. Some U.S. competitors are implementing a sustained effort to develop a broad range of offensive counterspace capabilities through a variety of anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons, including direct attacks on satellites, jamming and spoofing of signals, and continued cyberattacks on satellite and ground infrastructure. Use of these weapons could have serious consequences for all nations that benefit from space-based systems. Space is an increasingly contested environment, presenting a multitude of threats to U.S. space assets. Adversarial attacks could impact strategic capabilities such as those that support communications, position navigation and timing (PNT), and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR). Therefore, there is a strategic need to be able to quickly respond to disrupted assets and reconstitute degraded space capabilities.
To address this dynamic threat environment, the U.S. Space Force and the Department of War (DoW) have sought the ability to rapidly deploy and operate space-based assets in response to immediate, urgent, and often unforeseen tactical needs. In a milestone toward achieving tactically responsive space (TacRS), the 2023 Victus Nox mission launched its space vehicle a mere 27 hours after the order came, beating the previous record for responsive space launch by more than two weeks. Likewise, Space Systems Command’s (SSC) Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve (CASR) is augmenting space-based capacity during a crisis or conflict by establishing contracts with commercial space companies. CASR is one of multiple ways the DoW is ensuring that the web of satellites it can draw upon is so great, that attacking or disrupting them would be a wasted and escalatory effort.
Attachments
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| DARPA-SN-26-42.pdf |
On GovTribe
Work this opportunity on GovTribe
- Track it in your pipeline
- Find teaming partners
- Similar opportunities
- Ask GovTribe AI about this opportunity