3D render of planet Earth viewed from space, with night lights in Europe and sun rising over Asia. Blue hue treatment. Elements from NASA (https://eoimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/images/imagerecords/57000/57752/land_shallow_topo_2048.jpg)

The U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command has awarded SpaceX a $2.29 billion Other Transaction Authority (OTA) contract for the Space Data Network (SDN) Backbone, a proliferated Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation for high throughput, low latency data backhaul. SSC said in a late Tuesday release that the SDN Backbone “is a pLEO satellite constellation which functions as an integrated network, providing robust, resilient, high-capacity, and low-latency data transport for the Joint Force.”  The SDN Backbone will be an “expanded optically…