bc26555fdb
Some checks are pending
Sync Graph Data to teleo-app / sync (push) Waiting to run
- Source: inbox/queue/2026-03-xx-breakingdefense-space-data-network-golden-dome.md - Domain: space-development - Claims: 2, Entities: 2 - Enrichments: 1 - Extracted by: pipeline ingest (OpenRouter anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5) Pentagon-Agent: Astra <PIPELINE>
36 lines
No EOL
2 KiB
Markdown
36 lines
No EOL
2 KiB
Markdown
# Space Data Network (SDN)
|
|
|
|
**Type:** Protocol/Architecture
|
|
**Domain:** Space Development
|
|
**Sponsor:** U.S. Space Force, Air Force Research Laboratory
|
|
**Status:** Active development
|
|
|
|
## Overview
|
|
|
|
The Space Data Network (SDN) is the Pentagon's multi-orbit satellite communications architecture designed to provide real-time sensor-to-shooter connectivity for the Golden Dome missile defense system. The SDN is envisioned as "a space-based internet" integrating classified military and unclassified commercial communications satellites with missile warning/tracking sensors, GPS satellites, and distributed data processing capabilities.
|
|
|
|
## Architecture
|
|
|
|
The SDN comprises:
|
|
- Multi-orbit hybrid satellite constellation (military and commercial)
|
|
- Interlinked communications satellites across orbits
|
|
- Missile warning and tracking sensors
|
|
- Position, navigation, and timing (GPS) satellites
|
|
- Distributed on-orbit data processing nodes
|
|
- AI-enabled network orchestration
|
|
|
|
## Relationship to Golden Dome
|
|
|
|
The SDA's Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA) is described as "a prerequisite for the modern Golden Dome program." The PWSA "would rely on space-based data processing to continuously track targets," establishing orbital compute as a technical requirement rather than a design preference.
|
|
|
|
## Timeline
|
|
|
|
- **2026-03** — Breaking Defense reports SDN architecture details; AFRL contracts Aalyria for AI-enabled network orchestration capabilities; Golden Dome budget increases by $10B to $185B to expand space-based sensors and data systems
|
|
|
|
## Significance
|
|
|
|
The SDN represents the clearest technical specification of why Golden Dome requires orbital data processing: sensor-to-shooter latency constraints for missile defense make ground-based processing architecturally infeasible. The architecture is structurally identical to commercial orbital data center designs, creating potential for dual-use infrastructure.
|
|
|
|
## Sources
|
|
|
|
- Breaking Defense, March 2026: Pentagon's Space Data Network architecture |