Space Security and Defense Program

The Space Security and Defense Program (SSDP) is a joint effort between the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). It acts as a center for developing strategies to enhance the resilience of the National Security Space (NSS) Enterprise. Under the guidance of the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, SSDP aims to provide protection capabilities that are economically viable, executable, and operationally relevant. The program supports stakeholders such as the DoD, Intelligence Community, civil, commercial, and international space entities.

SSDP's main objectives include conducting assessments on susceptibility and vulnerability and implementing threat mitigation processes. The program focuses on understanding counterspace threats and blue operations environments through detailed analyses. It plans projects to detect, track, mitigate, or neutralize emerging space and transmedium threats. SSDP's analytical products aim to offer validated recommendations for both materiel solutions like system requirements and investment opportunities, as well as non-materiel solutions such as Tactics, Techniques, Procedures (TTP), Concepts of Operations (CONOPS), and space policy.

In Fiscal Year 2024, SSDP will continue focusing on Survivability and Defense, Offensive Space Control, and Preparing for Future Conflicts. The program emphasizes digital engineering products for space protection analyses and threat documentation. It invests in knowledge management infrastructure to improve accessibility to its analyses. Deliverables include digital engineering capabilities for the United States Space Force (USSF), including a Model Library with blue systems and red threat models for analysis environments.

Looking ahead to Fiscal Year 2025, SSDP will adapt to changes within the USSF and NSS community while maintaining its commitment to innovative solutions for space superiority. The program's priorities include ensuring resilience in near-term and future space missions, enhancing offensive space control force design, improving space control weapon effectiveness, and understanding space's role in cross-domain conflicts. SSDP will address these priorities through a mix of materiel and non-materiel solutions across various domains to support safe and sustainable on-orbit operations.