WASHINGTON — The UK will take part in a U.S. Space Command initiative focused on purchasing industrial space domain awareness data, the U.K. military space chief announced June 26.
U.S. Space Command operates the so-called Joint Task Force-Space Defense Business Operations Cell (JCO) at Schriever Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The UK will rise up a JCO-U.K. cell and collaborate with the U.S.
“I’m delighted that we will announce the stand-up of the national JCO-U.K. cell,” said Air Vice-Marshal Paul Alexander Godfrey, commander of the U.K. Space Command.
JCO-U.S. was established in 2020 to enhance the space-tracking capabilities of Space Command’s National Space Defense Center. The JCO buys data and analytics services from industrial corporations.
In accordance with a recent report by the Government Accountability Office, the U.S. Space Force is planning to offer roughly $20 million to the JCO for industrial SSA data purchases in fiscal yr 2023 and a complete of roughly $110 million for fiscal years 2023 through 2027.
Aiming for twenty-four/7 operations
“The stand-up of JCO-U.K. marks a step forward in constructing out our follow-the-sun model for twenty-four/7 operations,” said U.S. Space Force Brig. Gen. Bythewood, JTF-SD commander.
JCO-U.K. will assist within the JCO’s ‘follow-the-sun’ model, incorporating eight-hour operations shifts starting at local European time zones, allowing each cell to operate during normal business hours.
Personnel from the JCO, Space Systems Command and the Air Force Research Laboratory helped establish U.S.-U.K. communications, network connectivity, access to industrial data and to space domain awareness evaluation tools.
“JCO-U.K. has been leading the charge into global industrial operations, and our lessons learned together will help us deploy recent capabilities faster for our combined missions,” said Barb Golf, Space Systems Command’s strategic advisor for space domain awareness.