SILENT BARKER

Silent Barker provides onorbit optical space domain awareness for orbit determination, discovery, custody, and change detection of deep space objects. The Space-Based Space Surveillance Follow-On program partnered with the National Reconnaissance Office to satisfy common DoD and intelligence community requirements. Known as Silent Barker, the program includes both the space elements and the telemetry, tracking and command elements. Silent Barker will provide space situational awareness and indications and warning to detect geosynchronous orbit threats.

What is a "Silent Barker"?

A cryptonym is a secret name or word, or a code name or code word. The word "cryptonym" comes from the Greek words "crypto-" meaning "secret, hidden" and "-onym" meaning "name". The term was first used in 1868. The US intelligence community uses cryptonyms to refer to projects, operations, people, and agencies. A two-letter digraph is a prefix that designates a geographical or functional area. For example, the digraph AM refers to Cuba. Cryptonyms are used to group codenames into sets based on characteristics such as geographic location or other methods of grouping. For example, the digraph KU refers to organizations of the CIA itself.

Codenames may be publicly known. For security purposes, codenames are generally picked from a list of "good" words. The US and British intelligence agencies say that codenames are randomly chosen by computer. However, they avoid using common words that could be intended to mean their normal definitions. And these names are often taken from popular culture.

The 1892 book, the Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is a collection of short stories. One of the stories is “Silver Blaze,”a mystery about the disappearance of a famous racehorse the night before a race and the murder of the horse’s trainer. Holmes solves the mystery by recognizing that no one he spoke to in his investigation remarked that they had heard barking from the watchdog during the night.

Gregory (Scotland Yard detective): “Is there any other point to which you would wish to draw my attention?”
Holmes: “To the curious incident of the dog in the night-time.”
Gregory: “The dog did nothing in the night-time.”
Holmes: “That was the curious incident.”

The fact that the dog did not bark when you would expect it to do so while a horse was stolen led Homes to the conclusion that the evildoer was a not a stranger to the dog, but someone the dog recognized and thus would not cause him to bark.

The mascot on the NROL-107 launch logo looks like a fox. “Sly as a fox” is an idiom that means someone is cunning, experienced, and can get what they want, often in an underhand way. The phrase has been used for hundreds of years. Foxes have a reputation for being cunning or sly. They are known for being tricksters, sneaky, and cunning in their behavior.

Foxes are closely related to dogs, but their vocalizations are higher-pitched. Their bark sounds similar to that of a dog, except slightly higher pitched and sometimes shrill. Foxes have many vocalizations. They yip, they bark, they howl, they growl, they gekker, and they “squee”. They can be vocal year-round, but they are more vocal at night when the calls seem to travel farther in the still winter air. Foxes do bark, but their barks are higher-pitched and sometimes shrill compared to dogs. Foxes use their barks to communicate with other foxes, and they are often used when the fox is agitated or feeling threatened. Foxes may also bark during hunting and scavenging activities, and territorial disputes.

But maybe the mascot is not a fox, but rather a Basenji, nicknamed the 'barkless dog. And the NROL mascot does resemble the Basenji in coloration, and curly tail. The Basenji produces an unusual yodel-like sound known as a "barroo", due to its unusually shaped larynx. The basenji has been around for thousands of years, even possibly appearing in cave paintings in Libya. Basenjis are also known for their keen hunting instincts and may chase after small animals if given the opportunity. They are recognizable by their glistening short coat, tightly curled tail, and wrinkled forehead and expressive almond-shaped eyes that convey a variety of subtle, humanlike emotions.

The NRO and the USSF have a shared interest to strengthen the nation's SDA and Indication & Warning (I&W) capabilities to enable timely decision making and unity of effort to defend the DoD and IC critical capabilities against current and projected threats. SILENTBARKER will strengthen the NRO's ability to provide a wide range of timely intelligence information to national decision makers, warfighters and intelligence analysts to protect the nation's vital interests and support humanitarian efforts worldwide.

The Silent Barker initial contract was awarded in the first quarter of fiscal year 2018. Surveillance from space augments and overcomes existing ground sensor limitations with timely 24-hour above-the-weather collection of satellite metric data only possible with a space-based sensor and then communicates its findings to satellite operators, analysts, and other mission users.

The Silent Barker mission, also known as NROL-107, will serve as a "watchdog" to continually track other objects and detect potential threats in GEO, according to NRO Director Chris Scolese. The US Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) partnered up for the launch of spy satellites as part of their new Silent Barker mission.

The launch was set to be carried out by the United Launch Alliance (ULA), which said the mission will "protect nation's vital interests and support humanitarian efforts worldwide." Silent Barker's satellites were scheduled to launch on 28 August 2023 at 1234 GMT onboard an Atlas V rocket from the Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. However, in its latest update, ULA said the launch was delayed due to an impending tropical storm. Out of an abundance of caution for personnel safety, a critical national security payload and the approaching Tropical Storm Idalia, the team made the decision to return the rocket and payload to the vertical integration facility (VIF). A new date will be provided once it is safe to launch, potentially 07 September 2023.

The destination of the mission's satellites is geosynchronous orbit (GEO), a belt of satellites at nearly 36,000 kilometres above the equator. According to the Defense Intelligence Agency, activity in GEO poses a unique challenge to the Space Force, as spacecraft in GEO are difficult to track and characterize, and could threaten U.S. or allied satellites. For example, that report stated that adversaries could place operational or reserve satellites in deep space so they are much harder to monitor, and then move them to lower orbits for later use. In recent years, US officials have warned of several Russian inspector satellites approaching American spy satellites in both low-Earth orbit and higher up in GEO. By 2017 Air Force Space Command [AFSPC] and NRO had developed an SSA architecture designed to meet the DoD and Intelligence Community needs to enable space protection. As a result of the architecture work, we have developed a collaborative acquisition program to meet both NRO and Air Force Indications and Warning and SSA requirements. This new program was called SILENT BARKER.

The Air Force had a joint program with the National Reconnaissance Office called Silent Barker where, instead of having two programs on two different sides of the national security space business, there will be one. That one program will improve situational awareness of the geosynchronous orbit in a significant way. AFSPC increased analytical and prototyping efforts to support architecture development. This paid significant dividends in the changed SILENT BARKER acquisition strategy to partner with the NRO to provide greater capability, faster and at the same cost.

Silent Barker will provide the primary layer of critical space-based space situational awareness to the warfighter. The system will rapidly detect, identify, track, and collect data on resident space objects in deep-space orbits on the short timelines required to conduct indications and warning of threats against U.S. high-value assets. The Air Force contributes to this effort through the Space-Based Space Surveillance Follow-On program. By pursuing this collaborative effort with a key mission partner, the Air Force estimated in 2019 there will be approximately $400 million in overall cost avoidance over a traditional acquisition. While the Space-Based Space Surveillance Follow-On program remained under Air Force Service Acquisition Executive authority and control, it contributed funding and personnel to the NRO for executing Silent Barker.

The Silent Barker mission aims to "deter aggression" by letting potential adversaries know that the US Space Force is keeping a close watch on what happens in GEO, Space Force Lt. General Michael Guetlein said. "A huge element of deterrence is the ability for the adversary to know what we can and cannot see. So we actually want our competitors to know that we have eyes in GEO and that we can see what's happening in GEO," Guetlein said in a pre-launch teleconference.

The US military currently relies only on ground-based radars to scan GEO but by the Silent Barker satellites will be placed closer to observation targets, giving the NRO and the Space Force a new edge. "Not only are we going to maintain custody and the ability to detect what's going on in GEO, but we'll have the indications and warnings to know there's something out of the normal occurring, and that goes a long way towards deterrence."

While the exact capabilities of Silent Barker remain unknown, the US Defence Department is making an effort to be “more transparent” with this mission compared to others, according to Scolese. “We want to let people know, to some extent, what our capabilities are, and this is one capability that if you think about it, has great value beyond just national security,” Scolese said in a roundtable with reporters, He also said that the space environment is becoming more competitive as more countries launch missions into space, which also means "its becoming easier and easier to see what’s going up there."

While it was publicly known there were “multiple payloads” on the launch, officials had not disclosed how many, what companies were involved in building the satellites or specifics about their design, such as their scanners. However, Scolese said US officials plan at least one more launch with additional Silent Barker satellites in the coming years. Planned launch and Full Operational Capability is scheduled for fiscal year 2026. The budget is also unknown but the Government Accountability Office put the estimated cost of the program at $994 million.

It took only about three years to develop the Silent Barker and it is set to be fully operational in 2026, according to Scolese. The relatively short turn-around is due to the rare collaboration between Space Force and the NRO. “Today, the NRO and Space Force are working hand in hand to shape the future of ground moving target indicators, which will provide day/night, all-weather detection and tracking of ground and maritime targets for the warfighter,” Scolese said in earlier remarks.

Working together with the Space Force and other military services, allows the NRO "to deliver and acquire reliable and resilient GMTI systems at speed, delivering this critical capability with our colleagues at Space Force" to the mission. Frank Calvelli, the senior space acquisition authority at the Department of the Air Force, said, this team-up approach "really fits" his priority "of speed, speed and speed".

"The IC [Intelligence Community] had an existing design that we could scale up, and we can get there years earlier with, and that was really a deciding factor for partnering with them,” Calvelli said.

Raw data from the Silent Barker satellites will most likely remain classified but tracking information will be provided to the military's catalog of space objects, which is publicly available.The catalog is also widely used by commercial and international satellite operators to avoid clashes and interference.

The Basic Aerospace Doctrine of the United States Air Force specifies aerospace control as the key mission that is associated with the core competence of air and space superiority. This Doctrine requires that the Air Force gain and maintain dominance of space through its control thereof. This mission can be divided into three categories: space surveillance, protection, and negation. Although defensive counterspace operations (DCS) and offensive counterspace operations (OCS) are the pillars of space dominance and superiority (SDS), Space Situation Awareness (SSA) serves as the base for their effective functioning.

Thus, the accomplishment of the space dominance and superiority mission relies on the combination of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), together with real-time communication and information processing technologies that are the major enablers of this mission. Therefore, progress in system development that provides better and more effective Space Situation Awareness enhances the capabilities in space dominance and superiority and is desirable.

Space superiority is a fundamental part of a military air and space doctrine. Space superiority is gained and maintained through the application of counterspace operations. These counterspace operations are critical to success in modern warfare. Combatant commanders leverage space capabilities to maintain a combat advantage over adversaries. Space superiority ensures a freedom to operate in the space medium while denying the same to adversaries. Key to acquiring and maintaining space superiority is quick and accurate assessments of whether detected objects in a monitored space present a threat of harm to other items in the monitored space. As such, appropriate action can be taken only in response to threatening objects to maintain space superiority. Achieving the goal of accurate and efficient decision making to evaluate potential threat scenarios, however, is enormously challenging.

One Air Force top priority is to enhance awareness of the space domain. The Air Forec is leading an effort to fundamentally change the approach to SSA operations from cataloging to warfighting. In a warfighting domain, domain awareness is essential to successful mission accomplishment. Today’s SSA capability is catalogued focused and based on passive tracking. As potential adversaries continue to field capabilities that challenge our freedom of access in space, the Air Force needs better SSA tools, methodologies and CONOPS to enhance the Nation’s SSA mission.

AFSPC, in partnership with the NRO, has taken action codified in a CONOPS to guide the way forward in this endeavor. It has already activated the 18th Space Control Squadron (18 SPCS) under the 21st Space Wing in order to increase overall operational effectiveness and agility. The 18 SPCS, as the focal point for SSA, will drive great tactical synergy alongside other SSA units.

Gen. John W. Raymond, the head of Air Force Space Command, said in written testimony in May 2017 that AFSPC and NRO have developed an SSA architecture designed to meet the DoD and Intelligence Community needs to enable space protection. As a result of the architecture work, they have developed a collaborative acquisition program to meet both NRO and Air Force Indications and Warning and SSA requirements.

This new program is called SILENT BARKER [probably two words, not one, although seen both ways]. Brig. Gen. Mark Baird, director of space programs, told reporters at a November 2017 briefing that the classified mission will involve a new capability in the space situational awareness portfolio, though officials declined to provide additional details.

Another element of SSA includes space traffic management (STM), a concept that includes technical as well as regulatory elements to provide a framework for the safety, security and stability of space activities in the future.

The Air Force is increasing analytical and prototyping efforts to support architecture development. This has already paid significant dividends as it changed the SILENT BARKER acquisition strategy to partner with the NRO to provide us greater capability, faster and at the same cost. in a formal solicitation released 31 January 2019, the Air Force said it planned to launch the new capability in fiscal 2022. The program is also referred to as NROL-107 in the solicitation documents.

An advanced integrated multi-sensor system (AIMS) can comprise a shared optical train that is configured to cooperate with a laser tracking system, a visible imaging system, and an infrared search and track system so as to provide an integrated multi-sensor system. The AIMS can be used for detection, tracking, characterization, discrimination of an object of interest in space, air, marine or submarine environment. An AIMS can comprise a plurality of sensors and a shared optical train. The shared optical train can be configured to facilitate the most effective and reliable fusion of the data from multiple various sensors so as to provide a single observation angle (sight) for the plurality of sensing elements and thus facilitate an enhanced ISR capabilities.

Reasoning about threat capability and probability posed by the known or unknown object may involve considering multiple hypotheses of potential threat capabilities and motive for the reasoned identity; and considering diplomatic, intelligence, military and economic (DIME) information corresponding to the reasoned identity to determine the most probable threat capability and probability. Reasoning to identify the object as a known object or unknown object may involve consulting space catalog information, considering kinematic information for the detected object to deduce the most probable identity of the detected object, and considering other available information potentially characterizing the object.

Reasoning about the identity of the object as a known object or unknown object may involve comparing the received sensor information data to data corresponding to known satellites, and matching the received sensor information data to one of the known satellite objects to identify the object or designating the object as an unknown object and create a new data profile for the unknown object for future analysis.

Modern space surveillance systems are typically either distributed or collocated sensor modules. Thus, such surveillance systems are not capable of providing a comprehensive set of surveillance measures for accurate target characterization and consistent track association for multiple various standard data sources. For example, the effectiveness of imaging sensors in detecting passive (non-radiating) space objects commonly depends on sun illumination. As such, Earth eclipsed targets are less detectable.

The fusion of data according to nowadays practice suffers from inherent deficiencies. Data derived from distributed or collocated sensors can be difficult to match for various reasons, including incompatible observation conditions, variant parallax registration, observation angle and scaling factors, and deficiency in a common time standard resulting in significantly in track association.

Difficulty may encounter in the data fusion process, such as in the superposing of target features accurately. Indeed, post processing of time and space partitioned data sources with uncertainty in data delay may render the outcome deficient or unusable.

Surveillance in general, and space surveillance in particular, requires capabilities for detection, tracking, imaging, and characterization of remote objects with their characteristics that are not distinct. In general, most current space surveillance systems are not capable of generating the desired tracking accuracy, and providing required object characterization because they are single sensor based.