Emerging Digital Technologies on the Final Frontier - Distributed Ledger Technology Applications in Space Systems

Abstract

Space systems have become key components in a wide variety of critical infrastructures and some would say that they are critical infrastructures in themselves.They provide data gathering, communications, navigation, positioning and timing services that enable an important variety of critical services affecting billions of users.Increasingly, distributed ledger technology has begun to be integrated into the functioning of space systems, both in support of their roles and also to enable new roles.This article traces the main applications, discusses the issues inherent in blockchain use for space systems and underscores the potential that the technology provides across the space sector.