Oct 9 2020

Meet Laryssa Patten, Head of Space Technology Adoption and Resilience

Laryssa Patten is a Canadian Space Engineer and expert working at the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCI Agency). Patten, a passionate space expert, has worked in space engineering and technology for over 20 years. Her distinguished career includes working on Canada's RADARSAT satellite, training astronauts and cosmonauts for International Space Station Operations and working with various civilian, government, and military space programs.
Patten joined the NCI Agency in 2011 as a Senior Scientist and has been part of NATO's space journey since then. Now, as the Head of Space Technology Adoption and Resilience (STAR), Laryssa leads an exceptional group of space experts who are focused on leveraging space technologies to meet the evolving needs of NATO. She also leads the Allied Persistent Surveillance from Space (APSS) program, which aims to enhance the ISR capabilities of the Alliance and shape the future of space technology to deliver essential NATO capabilities.

Patten has been a key leader in the development and establishment of APSS, and for that reason, this year she was awarded NATO's highest honour, the Meritorious Service Medal.

We sat down with her to learn more about NATO's involvement in space and how important it is to dedicate time to this domain and prepare future generations.

What do you do at the NCI Agency?

My role is to lead the STAR team to ensure that NATO remains at the forefront of space capabilities, enabling us to provide the necessary space services for both civilian and military operations. Our goal is to ensure that NATO maintains its technological edge in space and benefits from secure, resilient, and effective employment of space domain technologies for the Alliance.

Given the changing security environment, the importance of our space services has become even more pronounced. Space technologies play a vital role in providing essential capabilities for both civilian and military operations. By staying at the cutting edge of space technologies, we can ensure that NATO is well-equipped to address the challenges of the modern world and maintain a secure environment for all.

In addition, I work to inspire others and foster excitement about space! I believe it is crucial to encourage and engage people of all generations in the wonders of space exploration and the potential it holds for our future.

Why is space so important to NATO?

Space is essential in our daily lives. We depend on space more than you might think. From banking, navigation, broadcasting to utilities rely heavily on space.

For NATO, collective defence, crisis response, disaster relief and counter-terrorism all use information delivered from and through space. Space underpins NATO's ability to navigate and track forces, to have robust communications, to detect missile launches and to ensure effective command and control. More than 2000 satellites currently orbit the Earth, more than half of which are owned by NATO member countries. This dependency created an environment where NATO Allies recognised that space is an increasingly shared security issue. In 2019, NATO declared space a new operational domain, alongside land, air, sea and cyberspace.

Meet Laryssa Patten, an engineer working to keep NATOtmpAmps technological edge in space

How is NATO keeping its technological edge in space?

Space capabilities are becoming more advanced, innovative, affordable and accessible. We are experiencing an exponential growth in activity. We need to ensure NATO maintains its strategic advantage and this requires us to keep pace with the rapid changes in the space domain.

Increased Alliance commitment to space results in greater demand for NATO's space services. The Space Technology Adoption and Resilience allows us to address space requirements through a central focal point, making it easier for NATO and industry to work together and for NATO to focus technology and service delivery efforts into a single area. We also manage the Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system, a critical capability to NATO based on five remotely piloted aircraft and the associated European-sourced ground command and control stations.

The Alliance Persistent Surveillance from Space (APSS) initiative pertains to the establishment of a virtual constellation of both national and commercial space assets, such as satellites. This constellation helps streamline data collection, sharing and analysis among NATO Allies and with the NATO command structure. This significantly improves NATO's intelligence and surveillance capabilities and provide essential support to missions and operations.

What is your favourite part about your job?

One of the coolest things I have done at the Agency was when I teamed up with 'Greenlight for Girls', an international organization that inspires girls to pursue STEM subjects, for an event to get students excited about space. More than 100 girls participated in a jam-packed day of hands-on workshops led by partners and supporters of the event, including the European Space Agency, the Dutch Police and Women in Aviation. The NCI Agency had a workshop, where participants built drones out of LEGO bricks and experimented with robots.

Space is a topic that can inspire anyone. We are all naturally curious about space, stars, planets, rockets, astronauts, and this curiosity, combined with dreams and imagination, is very powerful. I think it is important to promote the idea of space to young people to encourage our next generation and facilitate the development of our future space technology professionals. They connect with it and get energised by it, and it is a great way to get them to think about the possibilities for their future careers and to keep them interested in space and science in general.