The Space Force wants to better visualize the space domain, which is why the Defense Innovation Unit is asking companies, both American and international, to send funding ideas.

After teasing the Global Space Innovation Project on social media, DIU officials presented the project via video conference on November 3. This is a solicitation for an already existing or developing technology that could take the types of data collected for space operations all into something user-friendly, like an application, to visualize the domain and state of the systems. space.

“We’re looking for things that are already somewhat developed that we can go the next mile and really customize as needed,” said Matt Tompkins, co-founder of SpaceWERX, who got up in August and is working with DIU.

During the public video conference, officials said they had experience funding international companies in the wake of the 2020 US-UK International Space Pitch Day.

They said there are multiple awards that can be awarded and there are no prerequisites for a company to apply. They declined to give a dollar amount for the total project or an upper limit for individual scholarships, but admitted that they were modeling the program from the Small Business Innovation Research Phase 2 grants. . These are typically $ 750,000 for two years. International companies would not be eligible for SBIR grants, although they are still eligible to receive funding.

The Space Force Space Systems Command and the Air Force Department’s Office of Rapid Space Capabilities are funding the project, while the DIU is responsible for procurement.

An announcement with more details, including answers to frequently asked questions, was posted on the DIU website on November 4, but officials said it would be intentionally broad and didn’t even say whether a single solution or a suite of applications is preferred:

“Tell us why you think one solution is better than another,” Tompkins said.

Submissions will be accepted November 4-18. Companies can team up to apply.