Deseret News

Space is going to become a much busier place in the next few years.

At the start of 2019, the United Nations Register of Objects Launched into Outer Space reported there were about 5,000 registered “objects” in Earth’s orbit. But just one U.S. company, SpaceX, is planning on putting tens of thousands of small satellites into orbit over the next few years and just last week announced the launch of 60 of those devices, part of what will be a global network of low-earth-orbit satellites providing internet service.

Space is also the venue from which increasingly high-tech military operations around the world are being coordinated via government and military-operated satellites that currently represent about half of the functional satellites orbiting the planet.

And now, L3Harris Technologies in Salt Lake City is set to play a major role in ensuring communications between the U.S. military and its own growing network of orbiting assets are safe from interference from those looking to disrupt or obstruct those operations.

The U.S. Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center has awarded L3Harris a five-year, $500 million contract for the Air Force and Army Anti-jam Modem. The so-called A3M device will provide the Air Force and Army with a secure, wideband, anti-jam satellite communications modem for “tactical satellite communication operations.” According to L3Harris, the agreement has a $500 million ceiling, and is an “indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity” contract with an initial delivery order of $30.6 million.

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