SBIR-STTR Award

With incoming hypersonic and ballistic threats, the Optical Intersatellite Link (OISL) system must transfer large quantities of data in real-time across a mesh network of satellite crosslinks, and back-and-forth with the ground. Very high-speed, low-latency, mesh network encryptors are available on the ground; however, no interoperable National Security Agency (NSA) certified devices currently exist for space. OISL needs a flexible and autonomous encryptor supporting up to six 50 Gigabit channels, which is interoperable with these terrestrial network encryptors. We have assembled a team with the right set of capabilities to successfully develop, and certify with NSA, a space-qualified cryptographic solution for OISL. Our team are experts in designing innovative, cutting-edge systems that operate in the austere Low Earth Orbit (LEO) environment. We also bring extensive subject matter expertise designing, developing, embedding, and certifying with NSA high-assurance encryptors, including high-speed mesh-network network, MILSATCOM mission data, and Telemetry, Tracking, and Control (TT&C) encryptors. Furthermore, our team will recapitalize Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) technology in autonomous Key Management Infrastructure (KMI) Over-the-Network Keying (OTNK) developed with Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate (AFRL/RV) and the Space and Missile Center (SMC). Our Phase I approach is to collaborate with SDA, and other subject matter experts, in researching secure mesh network topologies and cryptographic use-cases for OISL. We will also plan, analyze, and describe our Phase II design, as well as perform initial risk-reduction demonstrations and plan for NSA certification. We will therefore quickly converge on a viable LEO mesh-network encryptor based on our team's NSA-evaluated TRL 9 cryptologic, smoothly certify the implementation with NSA, and transition it into manufacturing with rigorous supply-chain security.

Hypersonic weapons are a clear and present danger to our country. To defend against these high-speed weapons, the sensor-to-shooter chain must move sensor data securely without time delays. For incoming hypersonic and ballistic threats, the Space Development Agency (SDA) must transfer large quantities of targeting data in real-time across a mesh network of satellite crosslinks, and back-and-forth with the ground, while being resilient to sophisticated cyber-attacks. This stream of assured data allows Warfighters to track, target, and intercept the incoming hypersonics. SDA intends to build an Optical Intersatellite Link (OISL) network in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to enable this high-speed transfer of data, but the OISL has technology gaps that require innovation. Specifically, OISL needs a flexible and autonomous encryptor, which is interoperable with cost-efficient off-the-shelf terrestrial network encryptors. There are no High Assurance Internet Protocol Encryptor (HAIPE) encryptors, however, currently meeting SDA’s Network Established Beyond the Upper Limits of the Atmosphere (NEBULA) Standard that operate at this rate, either on the ground or in space. Our team’s innovative solution, developed in Phase I and described below, bridges this gap for SDA.