The US Air Force’s 460th Space Wing has made contact with the fourth Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite, Lockheed Martin announced on 19 January.
According to the company, the SBIRS GEO Flight-4 satellite - launched on 19 January - is responding to the wing's commands as planned.
Equipped with powerful scanning and staring infrared surveillance sensors, the Lockheed Martin-built SBIRS GEO Flight-4 is the latest satellite to join the air force's orbiting missile warning constellation. The sensors collect data for use by the US military to detect missile launches, support ballistic missile defence, expand technical intelligence gathering and strengthen situational awareness on the battlefield. The satellite also completes the initial constellation and enables SBIRS to provide global coverage.
At Buckley Air Force Base, the new SBIRS Block 10 ground control system receives large amounts of data from the satellites' sensors. The control system and its operators convert this data into actionable reports for intelligence, defence and civil applications.
The SBIRS GEO Flight-4 satellite will now transition to its final location in geosynchronous orbit, approximately 22,000 miles above the Earth. There, the satellite’s solar arrays, light shade and antennas will be deployed to begin on-orbit testing. It will join SBIRS GEO Flights 1, 2 and 3, which were launched in 2011, 2013 and 2017, respectively.
The airborne three-domain, the two ground-based and the ¼ ATR OpenVPX-based cross-domain systems were engineered to provide real-time security across multi-domain operations.
DARPA’s Mission-Integrated Network Control (MINC) programme was set up to develop an autonomous tactical network and enable critical data flow in contested environments.
Why space is an essential part of modern military capabilities
Defence-secure mixed reality headsets can save hours, or even weeks, of travel time to fix defunct equipment or get subject experts effectively “on-site” where they are needed.
The Joint Counter Radio-Controlled Improvised Explosive Device Electronic Warfare (JCREW) counter-improvised explosive device (C-IED) and Drone Restricted Access Using Known Electromagnetic Warfare (DRAKE) counter-UAS (CUAS) systems are mounted and dismounted RF jammers.
Adarga’s Vantage information analysis tool is in service with the UK MoD and individual UK forces. It builds on the company’s Knowledge Platform which processes, organises and analyses open source material, as well as information held by the user’s military, security and intelligence services.
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