The Department of Energy has added five new signatories to the Quantum in Space Collaboration program, which seeks to explore quantum technologies to advance national security and improve the U.S. economy.
The new partners include Boeing, Axiom Space, the Universities Space Research Association, Vescent and Qrypt, joining the first round of signatories announced in late 2023, the DOE said Friday. Their support highlights the public and private sectors’ commitment to promoting disruptive quantum capabilities and building a space economy.
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Developing Quantum Applications
The collaborative effort provides opportunities to develop and deploy quantum applications to advance space exploration and scale space manufacturing, according to Rima Oueid, a senior commercialization executive at the DOE Office of Technology Transitions. “We are excited to support a quantum-enabled space economy for the revitalization of Earth,” she added.
Under the partnership program, the participating organizations will work on feasibility assessments and demonstrations to build the foundation of a secure network of data centers for delivering hybrid quantum computing capabilities. The planned mesh network will be enhanced by quantum sensing, powered by nuclear energy and connected by secure quantum communications.
Using Quantum to Secure a Space Economy
In November 2023, the DOE launched the Quantum in Space Collaboration project, with the Department of Defense, NASA, Infleqtion, Nebula Space Enterprise and Accenture Federal Services as initial participants. Through the program, the agency envisions studying the use of quantum to secure a space economy.