- DARPA released solicitation PS-26-03 to seek new radar signal-processing technology for Arctic detection and tracking under the Frosty program.
- The solicitation sets January 30, 2026, as the deadline for industry abstracts and outlines technical goals for long-range sensing in high-latitude conditions.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Pentagon’s research and technology arm, released a new program solicitation on January 6, 2026, for the Frosty effort to develop technology that enables new radar-based sensing modes in the Arctic environment.
The notice invites industry to submit proposals by January 30, 2026, for solutions that improve detection and tracking of low-flying air vehicles and slow-moving maritime targets under auroral and high-latitude conditions.
According to the solicitation, DARPA seeks innovative radar signal-processing algorithms and analytical approaches capable of using noise-like illumination to sense targets in an environment where traditional radar performance is degraded. The solicitation states that responsive proposals must demonstrate an end-to-end approach that takes raw data and produces usable tracks.
The program leverages earlier DARPA research, including concepts explored in prior efforts such as the Assured Arctic Awareness program and current work under the Defense Applications of Innovative Remote Sensing initiative. Frosty’s technical foundation is based on externally energized fields that illuminate targets through dispersive, decorrelating ionospheric channels. The Proposers Day materials show that the intended architecture uses standoff illumination, coherent HF surface-wave return paths, and receive arrays that must process signals distorted by auroral scintillation.
The Frosty concept relies on techniques that compensate for geometry-dependent dispersion in the Arctic region. DARPA’s briefing materials note that anisotropic noise raises clutter levels and degrades cross-correlation performance, requiring advanced algorithms to restore coherence and achieve stable detection thresholds. The agency identifies three core risks: anisotropic illumination over a time-varying channel, hidden models where only incomplete data are observable, and the need to correct dispersive effects introduced by the environment.
DARPA’s technical metrics for Phase 1 include detection of airborne targets in the Arctic at a minimum range of 75 km, track formation using no more than 90 seconds of collected data, and a probability of detection above 90 percent. The documents show the program expects target platforms such as low-altitude C-12 aircraft and vessels equipped with transponders to serve as controlled sources during testing. Testing is planned for central and northern Alaska, including the Point Barrow region and Poker Flat Research Range.
The solicitation outlines a multi-year schedule beginning with data collection, signal-processing development, and quarterly program reviews. The notional timeline includes abstract submission, oral presentations, and the award of prototype agreements under Other Transaction authority. The materials show that testing, data analysis, and demonstration events are distributed across fiscal years 2026 through 2028.
DARPA’s release of the Frosty solicitation underscores the U.S. government’s effort to improve sensing and tracking in the Arctic as strategic activity increases across the region.