US Space Force confirms SpaceX will build sensor-to-shooter targeting network

The US Space Force awarded SpaceX a $2.29 billion contract to build the Space Data Network, a low-Earth-orbit communications backbone for military sensing and targeting data.

The system is expected to draw on Starlink-derived technology and likely the Starshield platform, replacing or reviving earlier Pentagon efforts that had stalled.

The network is designed to speed up and secure the flow of sensor-to-shooter data for the US military.

The deal gives the Pentagon a new space-based communications layer for battlefield targeting and command support.