WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force intends to award Northrop Grumman a sole-source contract to develop two ground-based radar sites to trace space objects.
These could be the second and third sites of the Space Force’s planned network of sensors generally known as the Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC).
Northrop Grumman in February 2022 won a $341 million contract to develop the primary DARC site within the Indo-Pacific region. The second and third are expected to be positioned in Europe and within the continental United States.
The Space Systems Command in a “special notice” published Aug. 7 said it “intends to release a sole source RFP [request for proposal] to Northrop Grumman” to finish fielding of the second and third DARC sites.
A sole-source RFP doesn’t equate to a contract but would start the technique of negotiating an agreement with the corporate. The federal government is allowed to issue sole-source contracts and not using a competitive bidding process in situations where only a single business can fulfill the necessities of a contract.
The Space Force estimates the contract to be awarded in late 2023 or early 2024.
DARC schedule
Northrop Grumman announced in May 2023 that its DARC proposal passed a critical design review. The primary site is predicted to be accomplished by 2025.
The Space Force notice said it expects the second site to be ready by 2028 and the third by 2029.
“The DARC program is an element of a bigger effort of moving towards a resilient space enterprise in our nation’s space domain awareness capabilities in a position to deter aggression,” the Space Systems Command said.
DARC’s primary focus can be tracking lively satellites and debris in geosynchronous orbit.
The procurement of the second and third sites are on a shorter timeline because of urgent needs for space domain awareness, said Space Systems Command.