https://www.defensenews.com/global/e...e-investments/
New UK space strategy sets the stage for defense investments
LONDON – Britain gave a broad view of where the country is heading in the defense space sector as it launched a national space strategy Sept. 27, but details about London’s military ambitions were largely absent from the document.
For a while, the government’s plan had been to release the national space strategy and an associated defense space strategy in tandem, but publication of the two documents has now drifted apart.
One space industry executive, who asked not to be named while discussing internal deliberations, said industry had been told a more defense-specific strategy was still incomplete and would have to wait until sometime next month for publication.….
Among the key developments include the first space launch from a UK spaceport, planned for next year, building a military-civil National Space Operations Centre, and creating the ministry’s new Space Command, which went operational earlier this year.….
Developing independent space domain awareness capabilities to protect UK satellites, advancing the Skynet 6 communications satellite program and building a small constellation of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance satellites with supporting architectures are part of the investment ambitions outlined by the strategy.….
Among the capabilities name-checked by the strategy document as being of interest were the dual-use applications of free-space optical communications systems…..
The government is also continuing to evaluate the case for investing in resilient Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) capabilities through a mix of innovative new terrestrial and space-based technologies……