JDRS-1

JDRS 1 is a Japanese data relay satellite with a dual military and civil mission. The satellite was built by Mitsubishi Electric (MELCO), probably using their DS-2000 bus. The military payload is an optical data relay payload to connect with the latest generation IGS-Optical and IGS-Radar reconnaissance satellites. The civilian payload is JAXA's experimental JDRS-1 (Japanese Data Relay System) payload for use with other JAXA low earth orbit assets to replace DRTS (Kodama). While Kodama was designed to provide high-speed communications through conventional S-band and Ka-band communications, its replacement also adds optical communications systems to further increase its throughput. JAXA's radio communication payload is DRTS, which is a direct replacement for Kodama.