DSP hardware to be provided by Mercury to BlueHalo for U.S. Space Force SCAR program
NewsApril 25, 2024
ANDOVER, Mass. BlueHalo selected digital signal processing (DSP) hardware from Mercury Systems to support the U.S. Space Force (USSF)’s Satellite Communication Augmentation Resource (SCAR) program.
Under the agreement, Mercury engineers will provide a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based common signal acquisition and digital beamforming solution for BlueHalo’s BADGER system, a multi-band deployable ground communications system that simplifies mission operations through agile and re-configurable beamforming tiles.
BlueHalo won the $1.4 billion SCAR contract in 2022 by the Space Rapid Capabilities Office (SpRCO), a direct reporting unit of the USSF. Last year, BlueHalo demonstrated target tracking and processing of signals using Multi-band Software Defined Antenna (MSDA) tiles deployed on its BADGER product. Mercury is currently delivering hardware, based on its Quartz RFSoC and Navigator Design Suite commercial product offerings, against an initial contract award received from BlueHalo in 2023. Under the new production agreement, finalized in January, Mercury engineers will deliver subsystems for additional BADGERs systems throughout 2024.
“This agreement with Mercury represents the first entrance into high-rate manufacturing for BADGER,” says Jonathan Moneymaker, BlueHalo chief executive officer.
BlueHalo recently announced the completion of a critical milestone the SCAR program by demonstrating its integrated backend mission services to USSF Guardian operators at the 2024 Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, CO. During the demonstration–which was hosted inside BlueHalo’s mobile command center, showcasing the system’s capacity to support mobile communications operations–Guardians received an operator orientation for the SCAR system interface, including the system scheduler and backend mission processor, which will pair with BlueHalo's BADGER phased array antenna to provide multi-beam, multi-orbit mission operations.
“We are excited to show Guardians, for the first time, the capability to easily identify satellite contacts and manage communication schedules using the new SCAR technology,” Moneymaker says. “It was important to get this technology in front of the Guardians to collect valuable insight from those who will soon rely on this system for space operations moving forward. The input they’ve provided this week will shape our national capabilities for decades.”
