Artist’s impression of the CACI/York Space DemoSat scheduled to launch in January 2023. (Credit: CACI)
CACI International, a U.S. defense contractor, plans to demonstrate a supporting navigation technology for military use as part of its DemoSat launch in January 2023.
CACI will launch two demonstration payloads on a York Space Systems satellite scheduled to fly to low Earth orbit in January aboard the SpaceX Transporter 7 rideshare.
The payload will contain an alternative positioning, navigation and timing solution that will work in a contested space domain. It is designed to support rather than replace GPS.
The technology is two-way time transfer and clock modeling technology. Two-way time transfer has been used for years on the ground. Two-way time transfer in space means the satellite sends a timing signal and a receiver on the ground or aboard an aircraft sends a signal simultaneously back to the satellite. The low size, weight and power (SWaP) space-based PNT is expected to significantly improve multi-platform remote sensing.
If the experiment is successful, CACI plans to offer the two-way time transfer PNT service to the military and other government agencies.
CACI has completed the critical design review for the DemoSat. CACI and its partner York Space Systems will also demonstrate a tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (TacISR) payload. The TacISR payload identifies and captures key signals of interest and operates with CACI’s Beast ground receiver to demonstrate real-time radiofrequency geolocation for deployed U.S. forces.
“CACI expertise, systems, and technology help our customers maintain dominance in the increasingly contested space environment,” said Mike Hale, executive vice president of CACI’s Advanced Solutions Group. “We are very proud that CACI is launching a DemoSat payload into orbit – distinguishing our mission technology and transformative solutions for customer success.”