A United States Space Force (USSF) run event — “Sprint Advanced Concept Training” (SACT) — aims to test the combat readiness of US space forces.
The exercise uses live data from real-world, commercial, and defense sensors to track objects in space. SACT also includes a civil space component which allows military members to practice working with civilian and commercial space operators in what is early emergence of a civil space traffic management community.
Saber Astronautics provided leadership for the Pacific region from their Mission Control Center, called the “Responsive Space Operations Center” (RSOC) in Sydney, which combines a range of new technologies to support decision making for large numbers of spacecraft.
Saber was recently selected by the Australian Space Agency through a competitive grant process to establish its Mission Control Centre in Adelaide. This project is funded by the Australian Space Agency’s Space Infrastructure Fund – Mission Control Centre grant opportunity.
During the event, the RSOC conducted civil space traffic management while receiving additional requests from the military teams. The RSOC then tasked commercial sensor networks from companies from the USA, Japan, and Australia, and analyzed changes to orbiting satellites. They received data from sensors, compared to known and expected satellite positions, and identified maneuvers for live spacecraft.
Historically, SACT was a USA only exercise, however in 2019 Saber’s international presence allowed integration with the U.S. Space Operations Center to Australia providing “follow the sun” 24-hour operational readiness from Saber’s RSOCs. The “civilian SACT” formed soon afterwards with companies from the USA, France, and Australia leading three regional cells each responsible for their 8-hour windows. The USA recently moved the space traffic management mission to the Department of Commerce, to prepare for this growth.
Now with the space industry tripling in size over the next decade there is increased interest in forming a global space traffic management capability, and the companies involved in SACT could form a core for such a global system.
Executive Comment
Saber’s CEO, Dr. Jason Held, said, “SACT explored our actions as a national civil Mission Control Centre if there was a war in space. Now we’re not space warriors, we’re more space traffic cops, as the RSOC’s primary mission during the event is ensuring safety of flight. But as a national centre we also have a relationship to government so it is important to explore how we can work with other agencies and the broader multinational community if something goes wrong. We’re about to leave the barnstorming era of the space industry, and, like the aviation sector, the space sector will also need cooperation, coordination, and interaction between civil and military stakeholders worldwide.”
