Falcon 9 Carries Classified Starshield Batch Tonight as Pentagon Bets $17B on Unkillable Satellites

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 with the third classified US Space Force mission in five weeks from Vandenberg. The Pentagon is investing $17B in a distributed constellation of hundreds of cheap encrypted satellites in low orbit with laser communication links to defend against anti-satellite weapons.

• Falcon 9 launched from Vandenberg with secret Starshield mission
• Third classified US Space Force mission in five weeks
• Pentagon invested $17B in distributed low-orbit constellation
• Satellites are cheap, encrypted, with laser communication links