Pentagon wants 250 new satellites

The Pentagon’s Space Development Agency (SDA) is seeking to win a budget of more than $11 billion (€10bn) in order to fund a mega-constellation of around 250 – but it could be 1200 – satellites for military usage.

The reports, carried by Bloomberg and Space News, say the budget request is for funding for the project in financial years 2021 – 2025. The Pentagon is said to have split its request into two elements: $582 million for studies and development of the project’s roadmap, and $10.6 billion for R&D, prototypes and eventual deployment.

The Pentagon already has budget requests in place for personnel for the project, as well as other key elements of the plan.