DARPA Wants Rocket-Powered Earth Eyeball

The Rapid Eye program is an exploratory development program with the overall goal of developing and demonstrating the ability to deliver a persistent ISR capability anywhere on the globe within one hour and remain on-station until relieved or the mission is completed. It is envisioned that this program will, at a minimum, develop and demonstrate all the technologies necessary for the rocket delivery of a High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAV. These technologies may include: low ballistic coefficient aerodynamic decelerators; low stored volume, deployable UAV structures; and high efficiency propulsion systems for vehicles operating at high altitudes. Other advanced technologies may also be developed and demonstrated as required by the architectures proposed by Offerors. The Government is not interested in approachs that employs any form of buoyant flight for this application. The Rapid Eye program will research and develop technologies and systems which will enable the military to: (i) rocket deliver a HALE UAV on a ballistic track to the approximate area of interest (ii) decelerate the launch package from reentry speeds to the UAV deployment speed, (iii) deploy the UAV and start its propulsion system, and (iv) provide persistent ISR on-station at high altitudes for a minimum of seven hours. The air vehicle ISR payload is nominally 500 lbs with a 5kW power requirement. It is envisioned that this proposed system will utilize a current inventory launch vehicle or one planned to be in the inventory by the end of 2009. Launch vehicle should not require significant modifications (minor modifications, common to other launches, such as changes to fairing configuration, are permissible).