Jane Edwards
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has started soliciting concepts that could be developed into new technologies to enable warfighters to defend and protect space systems from adversaries as part of the space superiority topic of DARPA’s Bringing Classified Innovation to Defense and Government Systems program.
Interested offerors for the space superiority technical domain may submit their proposals until Oct. 1 and DARPA said Monday it will continue to accept and review proposals on a rolling basis through March 15, 2024.
According to a presolicitation notice, DARPA is interested in space-based technologies that are compatible with Space Combat Power Projection and are at Technology Readiness Level 4.
Air Force Maj. Michael “Orbit” Nayak, program manager at DARPA’s Strategic Technology Office, said potential space-based national security tech concepts remain untapped and the agency is looking to reverse that by working with innovators with the best ideas when it comes to addressing challenges in the space domain.
“We want to find solutions we didn’t even know we needed to establish and maintain superiority in space,” Nayak added.
DARPA said awardees will receive an invitation to join the BRIDGES consortium and be sponsored for a facility clearance.
The BRIDGES initiative seeks to tap small businesses and nontraditional defense contractors to help develop technologies that could enable the Department of Defense to address challenging problems in the classified realm.
In April, DARPA kicked off the BRIDGES effort by seeking concepts focused on improving designs and components for next-generation antennas, the first topic area under the initiative.
