Australia’s Department of Defence has cancelled a $7 billion ($4.62 billion) contract with U.S. defence contractor Lockheed Martin for a military satellite communications system, saying current threats were more advanced than the technology.

“Instead of a single orbit solution, Defence must instead prioritise a multi-orbit capability increasing resilience for the Australian Defence Force,” the Department said in a statement cited by AAP.

It’s a move the U.S. Department of Defence has also adopted due to fears about their vulnerability.

How Satellite Networks Work

Broadly speaking, single-orbit satellites are high above the planet’s surface (35,786 kilometres) and track the rotation of the Earth, so they appear to be stationary overhead.

When a satellite is this far from Earth, it can “see” large areas, so as few as three equally-spaced satellites can provide near-global coverage.

A multi-orbit satellite is at an altitude of less than 2,000 kilometres, and as low as 160 kilometres, above the Earth.

These do not always have to follow a particular path around Earth as their plane can be tilted. Travelling at speed of around 7.8 kilometres per second, it takes approximately 90 minutes to circle the planet.

There are several advantages to this from a military and security standpoint.

In the event a satellite is damaged or destroyed by a hostile attack, the operator doesn’t lose visibility of a large area that would occur with a single orbit spacecraft, and can reposition another to fill the gap.

Also, being closer to the surface means it can take higher resolution images.

However, each multi-orbit satellite may be less useful for communications because of the speed they move across the sky, therefore, requiring a lot more tracking from ground stations.

This means they must work together with a “constellation” of multiple satellites to provide coverage, launching together to create a “net” around Earth to cover large swathes of the planet.

The Reasons for the Decision

The Australian Defence Department said the decision to axe single-orbit satellites would allow it to “prioritise emerging needs, mitigate capability gaps and continue to support our transition to an integrated, focused force.”

The original deal signed in 2021 was deemed not to meet “strategic priorities” given the acceleration in space technology and threats.

The Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) communications system was supposed to provide coverage across a swathe of the Indo-Pacific, ranging from the central Indian Ocean to the Solomon Islands, from around 2027.

Instead, it will continue to depend on various commercial and U.S. space-based communication systems, which it insists are sufficient to meet its immediate needs.

Among those systems is the U.S. Space Forces’ Wideband Global SATCOM system (WGS) network, to which Australia gained access by paying approximately $700 million for the WGS-6 satellite, which covers the Pacific Ocean.

Defence said Lockheed Martin Australia continues to be a “highly valued industry partner.”

The U.S. Space Development Agency (SDA) has awarded contracts to Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman to build satellites for its Transport Layer low earth orbit communications system.

“Lockheed Martin will continue to support the Commonwealth to meet its strategic needs and is proud to be partnering with the Australian Defence Force on many ongoing programs. We are committed to preserving our workforce, with impacted staff being redeployed across other existing and emerging programs where possible,” a spokesperson for the company said.

Opposition Calls the Move ‘Disgraceful’

Opposition defence spokesman Andrew Hastie called the move “disgraceful,” and that Australia’s national security was neglected because there was “no leadership and no money.”

“The cancellation of this project devastates our capabilities in strategic overwatch and our ability to co-ordinate our future defence force.”

The Integrated Investment Program included $9 billion to $12 billion for “enhanced space capabilities,” including up to $7.2 billion for the cancelled satellites intended to fend off cyber and electronic warfare attacks.