Page 46 - Australian Defence Magazine Nov 2020

46 SPACE SATCOMS
NOVEMBER 2020 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
“WHILE MANY PARTS OF THE DEFENCE ORGANISATION UTILISE SPACE SERVICES, AIR FORCE IS TAKING THE LEAD ON THE DOMAIN.”
global space architecture, and use commercial Satcom con- tracts to supplement and augment capability where required. “Defence will also deliver assured position, navigation and timing services to enhance the resilience of Defence capabil- ities including platforms, weapons and communication sys- tems that currently rely on Global Positioning System (GPS). “Defence will work with its Defence Science and Technol- ogy Group and collaborate with universities to better under- stand and potentially leverage available technologies in sup- port of precision timing capabilities. Research will provide a better understanding of alternative data sources to the posi- tion navigation and timing data provided by GPS. This will
be vital for Defence to prevail in a contested environment.”
RAAF LEAD
While many parts of the Defence organisation utilise space services, Air Force is taking the lead on the domain, with input from CASG, CIOG and DSTG as needed.
LEFT: Commercial satcom contracts will supplement capability where required
“Air Force has been designated as Defence’s space domain lead. Air Force will be responsible for coordinating Defence’s space activities and integrating space effects across the other domains, and currently supports space operations through the Australian Space Operations Centre (AUSSpOC) which is embedded in Joint Operations Command. Defence is also closely engaged with the Australian Space Agency and Aus- tralian industry to develop and supply sovereign space sur- veillance and mission system capabilities.
In July this year, the government outlined their funding and technology priorities for space, confirming upgrades to the C-band facilities at Exmouth in WA as well as a com- mitment to continue international partnerships with the five eyes community on space programs, technology and people.
“Operation Dyurra (the word for “stars” in the Ngunnaw- al language) is a dedicated Defence space operation that integrates space capabilities, services and effects into wider ADF operations,” AVM Roberts said. “Operation Dyurra also includes integration of ADF space operations with our partners through the US-led Operation Olympic Defender.
“To assure continued access to space, Defence is improv- ing its capabilities through space services (our satellite communications), space control and the space-based in- formation and intelligence program. Space Domain Aware- ness (SDA) underpins all other space missions, providing the ability to identify, characterise and understand factors that affect the space domain. SDA also provides opportuni- ties to advise of potential space collisions and reduce the likelihood of causing orbital debris.
UNDER ATTACK: THE PREVALENCE OF INTENTIONAL INTERFERENCE ON GNSS SYSTEMS
Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals, so vital for Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) data, are easily disrupted by simple low power jammers or highly sophisticated hostile interventions. An effective and reliable interference resistant receiver system is an absolute essential to survive, persist and thrive.
Imtiaz Bahadur, Cobham Aerospace Connectivity’s Assured-PNT Product Manager explains: “Right now we’re focussed on enhancing GNSS anti-spoofing solutions, which is the protection against more sophisticated interruptions that involve the falsification of the navigation signal information for nefarious reasons such as piracy, civil disruption and military advantage.
“One of the best protection mechanisms a customer can employ is the use of multiple frequencies across multiple constellations such as GPS, Galileo, GLONASS and Beidou.
“In order to stay one step ahead of the sophisticated threats, we’re using the latest digital signal processing techniques, including simultaneous excision, nulling, and beamforming across multiple frequencies to provide the highest level of protection for both airborne and land based
platforms. Additionally, our software-defined architecture allows sharing of threat intelligence with on-board mission systems. In-field upgradability ensures the system stays ahead of the evolving nature of the threat landscape and further reduces the lifecycle costs.”
Cobham designs and manufactures its own Controlled Radiation Pattern Array (CRPA) antennas and Fixed Radiation Pattern Antennas (FRPAs) including active, passive, and conformal variants and recently introduced the world’s first L1/L2 dual frequency non conformal antenna certified to both ETSO-C190 and MSO-C144 (part number 20-2041) in compliance with the Global Aircraft Traffic Management (GATM) mandate.
When asked what customers should look for in an A-PNT solution Bahadur replied: “It’s really important that customers look for solutions that can be optimised and tuned to suit specific applications. In reality, this is only achievable where there’s a high level of integration between the antenna and the Antenna Electronics. This approach ensures that a customer will experience superior performance including during the 99.9 per cent of time spent operating in a benign environment.”
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