Contested space, where nations compete for military dominance outside Earth’s atmosphere, is driving many military space platforms, but commercial space and small satellites continue to change the way the military suppliers of space electronics approach radiation-hardened component design from testing to deployment.

Industry experts say open standards are helping drive development in small-form-factor battlefield and aerospace hardware like system-on-chip and single-board computers.

Featured products will include ultra-small form factor mission computers and network switches, rugged high capacity storage solutions - such as the Data Transport System, and size, weight, and power (SWaP)-optimized embedded avionics systems - such as the ultra-lightweight Fortress Crash Protected Recorder.

The fast growth of small satellites and their lower life cycle and launch costs has created a sizable market for low-cost electronic components that have radiation-resistant characteristics.

Curtiss-Wright is working with NASA and aerospace leaders to return Americans to the Moon and send astronauts to Mars in the early 2030s

Curtiss-Wright’s Defense Solutions division enhanced the Parvus DuraCOR 312, the industry’s most powerful and flexible ultra-small form factor (USFF) mission computer, with the NVIDIA Jetson TX2i module.

We look at how ruggedized Data acquisition units, used in aerospace flight test, can provide a low cost solution for some space mission systems.

The challenge of fitting all the mission system electronics on-board SWaP-constrained military vehicles, while meeting reliability and schedule constraints.