US Space Force kicks off PNT-SENTINEL programme

A Slingshot Aerospace terresterial tracking sensor hub for on-orbit satellites. (Slingshot Aerospace)

The US Space Force (USSF) and Slingshot Aerospace are teaming up on the development of the service's newest programme to protect GPS from jamming and spoofing attacks.

USSF awarded Slingshot Aerospace a USD1.9 million development deal to support the stand-up of the new Positioning, Navigation, and Timing - Secure Electronic Navigation Threat Intelligence and Location (PNT-SENTINEL) programme, according to a 15 January company statement.

Specifically, the USSF deal will finance ongoing work “to further develop Slingshot's existing GPS jamming and spoofing detection, as well as more precisely geolocate the sources and predict patterns of interference” as part of the PNT-SENTINEL effort, according to the statement.

Detection capabilities on PNT-SENTINEL will not be limited to single GPS signals but will also cover signals transmitted across multiple global navigation satellite (multi-global navigation satellite services [GNSS]) systems, such as the European Space Agency's Galileo GNSS constellation.

“The ability to ingest data from multiple GNSS sources allows allied nations to contribute data from their spacecraft to produce a more complete, real-time view of jamming,” company officials said in the statement. Furthermore, programme officials are also developing a new end-user interface for PNT-SENTINEL “that allows [users] across US and allied services to easily review and make informed decisions during national security operations”, the officials added.

The USD1.9 million awarded to Slingshot Aerospace in January to finance ongoing development of the second phase of PNT-SENTINEL is geared specifically towards maturing the company's Data Exploitation and Enhanced Processing (DEEP) capability, company officials said in the statement.