Billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX is building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a secret contract with the US intelligence agency. This was reported by Reuters.
According to the agency, SpaceX Starshield’s commercial division is responsible for creating the network. The value of the contract signed in 2021 is $1.8 billion and its customer is the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), whose area of responsibility includes the management of spy satellites.
If the program is successful, the ability of the U.S. government and military to quickly identify potential targets virtually anywhere in the world will significantly increase, agency sources said.
According to Reuters, “The contract shows the intelligence community’s increasing confidence in the company, whose owner has clashed with the Biden administration and caused controversy.”
According to the agency, the newly disclosed data points to a new page in the use of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite communications in the war in Ukraine.
The publication claims that the new powerful spy system will consist of hundreds of low-orbit satellites capable of obtaining high-resolution images of the Earth. Reuters currently does not have information on when the new network will be operational and what other companies will be involved in its creation.
When contacted, NRO acknowledged it was developing a new and complex satellite system but declined to comment on Reuters’ findings about the extent of SpaceX’s involvement in the effort.
On February 21, Elon Musk’s company concluded Collusion with the USA. Details were unknown at the time.
Previously SpaceX learned connect ordinary smartphones to Starlink satellite Internet.