Scout Space to test novel SDA sensors on Dawn Aerospace Spaceplane

Scout Space to test novel SDA sensors on Dawn Aerospace Spaceplane
by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Aug 26, 2024

Scout Space Inc., a prominent provider of in-space observation services focusing on space security and autonomous solutions, is set to achieve a major milestone with the first demonstration of an innovative Space Domain Awareness (SDA) capability in very low Earth orbit (vLEO). This demonstration, named "Morning Sparrow," will take place aboard a reusable, taskable, sub-orbital spaceplane platform developed in collaboration with Dawn Aerospace. The agreement for this mission, along with several future flights, was signed between Scout and Dawn in August.

Scout's Sparrow payloads, designed for vLEO observations, bring essential advantages to defense operators, offering taskable intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. The mission is scheduled for November 2024 at the Tawhaki National Aerospace Centre near Christchurch, New Zealand. Dawn Aerospace's Mk-II Aurora, a rocket-powered aircraft capable of reaching 100 km altitude multiple times daily, will conduct the mission. The aircraft's flexibility and maneuverability allow rapid deployment of Scout's Sparrow payloads, providing a responsive solution for time-sensitive intelligence gathering. The Mk-II Aurora will transport the twin Sparrow payloads to high altitudes, penetrating the stratosphere and achieving supersonic speeds.

"Scout is proud to lead the way in securing vLEO in collaboration with Dawn Aerospace. By expanding our international partnerships and embracing both companies' shared cultures of innovation, we are looking forward to developing and fielding something that has never been demonstrated before," stated Philip Hover-Smoot, CEO of Scout Space Inc. "This 'first-of-its-kind' tactically responsive vLEO SDA capability introduces a significant new tool for space defense operators."

Stefan Powell, CEO of Dawn Aerospace, remarked, "When paired with the rapid response capabilities of a sub-orbital, ground-based platform, Scout's solutions are game changing for vLEO SDA. This combination provides a level of effectiveness and resilience that surpasses what can be achieved by traditional providers."

Mission Components:

- SDA Payloads: The Sparrow system consists of a stereoscopic pair of sensors (one with a narrow field-of-view and one with a wide field-of-view) featuring on-board processing in a compact design.

- Dawn Aerospace's Mk-II Aurora: The Sparrow payloads are seamlessly integrated into the fuselage of the Mk-II Aurora, housed in an open payload bay with an optical window.

During this proof-of-concept mission, Scout will calibrate and test the core functions of the Sparrow sensors as they are integrated into the Mk-II, capturing images, diagnostic data, and environmental information throughout the flight. This demonstration will showcase the potential for deploying Scout's secure SDA solutions on future Dawn spaceplane missions, offering sensor access to unique environments that are not adequately covered by traditional SDA solutions.

"This partnership with Dawn brings to the market something fundamentally new from two organizations dedicated to pushing the edge of the possible," added Hover-Smoot. "Our successful demonstration of our novel tactically responsive vLEO SDA capability will pave the way for future advancements in space security and multi-domain Space Domain Awareness."

Nate Bickus, Mission Systems Engineer at Scout and program manager for the mission, emphasized, "Interoperable ready-to-fly SDA capabilities are crucial to future space architectures and space security. We're excited to collaborate with Dawn Aerospace in leveraging Sparrow's platform agnostic design to field a quick-turn demonstration of a truly unique SDA solution, a solution that can significantly enhance the responsiveness and scope of space security operations across the orbital regimes."

Scout Space