SpaceX is building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a secret contract with the US intelligence agency, the agency reported Reuters five sources familiar with the program. The spy network is being built by SpaceX’s Starshield business unit under a $1.8 billion contract signed in 2021 with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).
If successful, the program will significantly expand the ability of the US government and military to quickly identify potential targets almost anywhere in the world. SpaceX’s contract is for a powerful new spy system with hundreds of satellites and the ability to capture images of the Earth. It is not known when the new satellite network will be operational and what other companies are participating in the program.
SpaceX did not respond to several requests from Reuters to comment on the contract, its role in it, or details of the satellite launches. The Pentagon, in turn, referred the request to SpaceX and NRO. The latter acknowledged its mission to develop a complex satellite system and partnerships with other government agencies, companies, research institutions, and countries, but declined to comment on the extent of SpaceX’s involvement in the project.
«The National Reconnaissance Office is developing the most effective, diverse, and sustainable space intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance system the world has ever seen», — said the NRO representative.
According to the sources, the satellites can track targets on the ground and share this data with US intelligence and the military. This allows the US government to quickly obtain continuous imagery almost anywhere in the world, helping intelligence and military operations.
Since 2020, about ten prototypes have been launched, among other satellites, on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets. The US government’s database of objects in orbit shows that several SpaceX missions have deployed some satellites that neither the company nor the government has ever reported. Sources confirmed that these are prototypes for the Starshield network.
The planned Starshield network is separate from Starlink, SpaceX’s commercial broadband group, which currently has about 5,500 global Internet satellites. It is one of the most important capabilities of the US government in space, as it is designed to provide the most constant, comprehensive and fastest coverage of activities on Earth.
«No one can hide», — says one of the sources.