The US Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) has selected ALL.SPACE for a project aimed at scaling the production of dual-use space systems.
Known as Adaptive Space Manufacturing and Integration at Scale, or 10ⁿ, the initiative addresses capacity constraints and long lead times across the US space supply chain.
According to the DIU, the sector has traditionally focused on small quantities of customized hardware but now faces growing demand from expanding satellite constellations and increased launch activity.
ALL.SPACE will use its Hydra satellite communications terminal to demonstrate how multi-orbit communications equipment can be produced and delivered more rapidly.
The company will work through an iterative design, build, test and qualification process.
This will combine rapid integration, automated testing and streamlined qualification to determine whether production can be increased while meeting the required technical and operational standards.
The wider 10ⁿ program aims to demonstrate production rates of hundreds of units per month and thousands per year.
Hydra Terminal
Hydra terminals can connect simultaneously to multiple satellite networks in different orbits, providing alternative data paths if one link is disrupted.
Last year, ALL.SPACE tested Hydra MAX under a US Army program at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland.
Mounted on a vehicle traveling over rough terrain, the terminal maintained connections to low-, medium-, and geostationary-orbit satellites while transmitting data and high-resolution video.
The trials brought Hydra MAX to Technology Readiness Level 6, indicating that a representative prototype had been demonstrated in a relevant military environment.
Using digital beamforming and tracking technology, the terminal can simultaneously send and receive data over two satellite links.
This is intended to maintain communications when individual connections are blocked, degraded, or jammed.
