The National Reconnaissance Office is enhancing its data-sharing capabilities by expanding its satellite network with over 100 additional payloads by the end of the year.
The expansion is intended to support warfighters, analysts and first responders by providing them with more reliable and efficient means of organizing and sharing unstructured data through advanced analytics and computing environments, the NRO said Thursday.
Speaking at the Mitchell Institute’s Schriever Spacepower Forum on Thursday, NRO Principal Deputy Director Troy Meink said the agency is leveraging whole-of-government and commercial partnerships to accelerate the adoption and development of new technologies necessary for increasing client demands.
According to Meink, the NRO is collaborating with more industry partners in the defense, intelligence, and commercial sectors to enhance its data science talent base. This has enabled the agency to access new tools such as advanced computing, digital engineering and data analytics, resulting in a boost in its supply chain and launch capabilities.
The NRO is working on expanding its proliferated overhead architecture to achieve what would reportedly be the largest government constellation in history. By increasing the number of satellites in orbit, the volume of data also increases.
“We have been dealing with rapidly growing data volumes almost since our inception more than 60 years ago,” said Meink. “The difference is the new tools we have available to apply to this challenge.”
