Supply Chain Security Is Vital for Space Missions. Here's How to Ensure It.

Here at Greenwood Aerospace, we have long talked about the importance of supply chain security. Granted, this was regarding terrestrial operations, but the concept is the same. As space exploration continues to heat up and expand, the demand for reliable supply chains will become increasingly competitive. 

Partnering with a supply chain and logistics specialist has never been more important, and this will play out as space-based resources become more scarce with increased demand. In this post, we’re going to lay out what it takes to ensure supply chain security, and how we see supply chains and logistics for space missions. 

The Importance of Supply Chain Security in Space Missions

The first distinction to make is not just about supply chain security in space missions, but in general. Space is particularly important because there are so many different suppliers and partners for the projects which creates the potential for cybersecurity vulnerabilities. 

Also, space assets, whether civil, governmental, or military, are always high-value targets. Space vehicles and other space-mission assets are tempting targets for competing nation-states. One example was two years ago when Russia attacked Viasat’s KA-SAT satellites over Ukraine, and also jammed SpaceX signals to the region. It has been done before, and it will be attempted again. We don’t necessarily know who will do what, but real estate in outer space is extremely important so space assets and their associated supply chains will always be targets. 

The Rising Threat Landscape

The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine is a good illustration for things to come. Space missions rely on highly specialized and sometimes irreplaceable components, whose structural integrity is critical. Successfully sabotaging these components, or the supply chain to deliver them, is a major threat. 

And the thing is that there isn’t necessarily a single (or multiple) bad actors that creates a rising threat landscape. That’s not really what is happening, or how it works. Instead, the rising threats are growing numbers of sophisticated and diverse risks that compromise space supply chain security. 

Critical Components and Their Vulnerabilities

There certainly is a potential physical threat to space-based assets and logistics, but cyber threats remain one of the most common and dangerous. These threats exploit the weaknesses in the supply chain without ever firing a missile. 

The critical components for space logistics are too numerous to list or mention, but they include the rockets themselves, fuel, robotics, and the payload. As the space supply chains expand, so will the critical component lists. It is possible that we don’t even know yet what the critical components will be in a decade, or they haven’t even been invented yet. 

Key Strategies for Securing the Space Supply Chain

There are a few different areas that will require extensive effort to secure the space supply chains of the present and the future. In the past, with earth-based supply chains, the focus has been largely on physical security.

Physical threats were mostly based on risks from internal and external sources, namely theft, sabotage, and terrorism. Modern space supply chain threats are still vulnerable to terrorist attacks and sabotage, but it is more likely to happen in the digital domain, not the physical.  

Risk Assessment and Management

Supply chain security is all about focusing on and mitigating risk from external suppliers, vendors, logistics, and transportation. The fact that this is in space adds another dimension to the complexity of the matter. 

Part of the management component is understanding that every new supply vendor, every new contractor, every new anything, poses an additional threat to the overall supply chain. Properly vetting each link in the supply chain, and continuously monitoring all members, is important. They probably are not knowingly opening up digital back doors for hackers or other saboteurs, but it happens. 

Supplier Verification and Compliance

That last line was a segue into the next piece of the puzzle. All potential suppliers have to be thoroughly vetted. 

They will be checked for financial stability, reputation in the industry, and maybe most importantly, their history of compliance with industry regulations. This process is thorough, and it has to be; it costs a mind-blowing $6,000 per pound of cargo to reach low-Earth orbit. Logistics for space missions is and will continue to be extremely expensive, but that is the nature of the mission. The demand is there ($570B in 2023 alone), and is growing steadily ($1.8T by 2035).

We cannot afford for space exploration and research to be derailed by poor security practices. 

The Role of International Collaboration

Space research and exploration has become a huge multinational process. But again, with this comes a whole new host of potential pitfalls. Every new country, every new vendor, brings with it something to offer, but also potential pitfalls. 

Collaborative Standards and Protocols

The only way to secure international collaboration, which is the most sensible way to grow and expand space missions, is to produce security standards and protocols that can and will be followed by all parties. 

This will either be or will probably look like the International Standards and Protocols (ISO), where data and communications standards exist to ensure interoperability between space agencies and their assets.

Sharing Intelligence and Resources

Joint space missions, and their associated supply chains and logistics, will rely heavily on shared intelligence and intellectual and security resources. No specifics here, but understand that intelligence is everything. Planning for and reacting to current threats and emerging threats all relies on reliable intelligence, and it will have to be shared between all parties. 

Future Trends in Space Supply Chain Security

The name of the game here is emerging tech. The tech we will be using in 10-15 years for supply chain security probably doesn’t exist yet, or it is a highly advanced version of what we see today. 

Emerging Technologies

There are a few key technologies that will be instrumental in supply chain security for space missions moving forward. 

Blockchain Technology

Blockchain offers a decentralized and tamper-proof ledger system that can track every transaction and movement of parts and materials in the supply chain. This will prove important especially for international agreements with potentially hundreds (maybe even thousands) of vendors and contractors, not to mention state actors. 

Check out our take on Blockchain in aviation logistics. 

AI and Machine Learning

We are no strangers to this technology at Greenwood Aerospace; our proprietary technology Greenwood Part Procurement Intelligence Program (GPIQ) relies heavily on both. Space mission logistics will use the same tools, for largely the same reasons: analyzing vast amounts of supply chain data to predict and mitigate risks. These technologies can identify patterns and anomalies that may indicate security threats, such as counterfeit parts or cyberattacks.

Final Thoughts

We can’t even begin to scratch the surface for the complexity of space supply chains. These will be unbelievably complex, and expensive. With that said, though, Greenwood Aerospace is at the forefront of aerospace supply chain tech and service, with a forty year history of excellence to back us up. 

We are ready to support the space missions of tomorrow with the advanced tech of today and the great work ethic and attention to detail that you’ve come to expect. Give us a call at (580-762-2580), or email at contact@governmentprocurement.com. Or, you can request a quote for services right now and get started!