The US Space Force signed an agreement with K2 Space (city. Torrance, California) contract for the amount 22,9 million US dollars for a laser demonstration (optical) communication between satellites.
According to the terms of the contract, announced 31 July 2026 year, K2 Space will make the purchase, integration, launch and operation of two Enterprise Space Terminals. Each terminal will be placed as a payload on a separate K2 satellite. The end of the demonstration is scheduled for 2028 year.
For reference: Enterprise Space Terminal is a large-scale military space program of the US Space Force, aimed at the development of unified optical (laser) communication terminals for satellites. The main goal of the initiative is to ensure high-speed and secure data transfer directly between the devices of various missions and manufacturers in Earth orbit.
The experiment is funded within the Space-Based Sensing and Targeting portfolio. The performer was selected using the FreeSol Broad Agency Announcement mechanism.
For reference: Space-Based Sensing and Targeting is the strategic portfolio of defense programs of the US Space Force, aimed at deploying a large-scale detection satellite array, tracking and targeting air and moving targets directly from space.
FreeSol Broad Agency Announcement is a special flexible mechanism for government procurement and financing of the US Space Force, created to attract innovative commercial technologies beyond traditional ones, lengthy bureaucratic procedures.
Source: https://spacenews.com