The United States Space Force has awarded an extension to its contract with General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) to develop a classified cloud-based environment that will facilitate collaboration with industry.
The contract extension will allow for more stakeholders to participate and open up the project to public cloud service providers, as reported by DefenseScoop.
Known as Project Enigma, GDIT received $18 million to develop the prototype digital infrastructure that will enable the Space Systems Command (SSC) to collaborate with different stakeholders on a shared cloud-based network.
Travis Dawson, GDIT’s senior director for Project Enigma, told DefenseScoop, “This resulting ecosystem of digital services will further drive resilient and secure information sharing for anyone, anywhere, at any time.”
Dawson highlighted the importance of working in a government environment with the ability to perform classified and unclassified tasks on the same device: “Instead of having to leave your device and go to a secure facility, log in with classified credentials, etc., you can do it all from one device.”
The expansion of Project Enigma will allow GDIT to add more “mission partners” and commercial cloud service providers to the platform, turning it into a classified multi-cloud environment. Dawson did not disclose the names of the cloud providers, but mentioned that they are approved by the Department of Defense’s Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability (JWCC) contract.
Currently, under the JWCC, Microsoft, Oracle, Amazon Web Services, and Google are included. All American companies, making it clear that there is no room for non-U.S. companies, something that European governments should take note of.
The Space Force had previously awarded Microsoft a contract to develop a cloud-based space simulation called the Intelligent, Immersive, Integrated Environment. This augmented reality simulation was built on Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing infrastructure and is viewable through Microsoft’s HoloLens headsets.
In April 2024, the Space Systems Command (SSC) of the Space Force was seeking to issue a production contract for a ground system that provides data transfer as a service. That contract was valued at $42.1 million and was awarded to Sev1Tech.
This initiative reinforces the Space Force’s commitment to enhancing collaboration and security in information sharing through advanced cloud solutions, integrating both government and commercial entities in a cutting-edge technological environment.