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The Space Force welcomes progress in the missile warning satellite program

Posted on by darion

WASHINGTON – Amid growing interest in low-Earth orbit satellites, the U.S. Space Force is making progress on a more traditional space capability: large missile warning satellites. The Next-Gen Airborne Persistent Infrared (Next-Gen OPIR) program, estimated at $14 billion, is currently one of the Space Force’s most expensive satellite procurement efforts.

These massive satellites play a key role in detecting missile launches and providing early warning of potential threats to U.S. militaries and allied nations. Despite trends toward smaller and cheaper satellites, the next-generation OPIR program highlights the military’s dependence on high-altitude surveillance sensors placed in geostationary and highly elliptical orbits.

Progress amid complexity

Last month, Raytheon delivered the first of two infrared payloads for OPIR’s next-generation geosynchronous (GEO) satellites, marking a key milestone in the program. Lockheed Martin is building these satellites, and the Space Force currently expects the first GEO satellite to be delivered in late 2025.

Frank Calvelli, the Space Force’s top procurement official, said contractors are achieving next-generation OPIR development milestones and schedules at a faster pace than previous systems such as SBIRS (Space-Based Infrared System).

“The current production time for the next-generation OPIR GEO has been reduced by 50 percent compared to the initial development of SBIRS,” Calvelli said in a statement to Space news.

Launched in 2018, the next-generation OPIR program includes two GEO and two polar satellites in highly elliptical orbits. According to Calvelli, Northrop Grumman, which leads the polar-orbiting satellite program, is “achieving planned milestones to date.” The launch of the first polar satellite, scheduled for launch in 2028, is seen as crucial to monitoring missile threats via routes through the Northern Hemisphere.

Col. Robert Davis, director of the space sensing program at Space Systems Command, described the delivery of the first GEO payload as a “pivotal event” for the program. “We’re integrating it right now,” Davis told reporters last week, adding that if the tests go well, the Space Force will remain on track to potentially launch the first GEO satellite in late 2025.

Meanwhile, the Government Accountability Office warned of potential technical and scheduling risks, citing aerospace hardware manufacturing and integration challenges arising from supply chain issues and the complexity of integrating a novel payload.

A layered approach

Advocating a shift to smaller, cheaper satellites using commercial production lines, Calvelli emphasized that some space missions still require “larger, low-volume satellite systems.” He emphasized that the next-generation OPIR “meets a critical need for the missile warning mission and is the last small-scale, large-scale OPIR acquisition in the near future.”

In parallel with next-generation OPIR, the Pentagon is also investing in LEO and medium Earth orbit (MEO) missile warning systems as part of a broader strategy to develop a layered missile warning architecture. This multi-orbit strategy is intended to counter sophisticated missile threats, including hypersonic glide vehicles and advanced ballistic missiles from adversaries such as Russia and China.

“Multi-layer architecture is the way to go when you look at the resilience calculations in some of the areas that we’re interested in,” said Rob Mitrevski, vice president of L3Harris Technologies, the prime contractor for the LEO rocket-tracking spacecraft the company produces for the spreading constellation overseen by the Aerospace Development Agency .

While GEO satellites provide persistent, global coverage, most of the technological innovations in missile detection and tracking come from LEO satellites, Mitrevski said at the recent Air Space & Cyber ​​Conference.

These lower-flying satellites can be deployed in larger numbers, at lower costs, and offer greater flexibility and resiliency, he said. He added that LEO sensors can more easily use artificial intelligence to identify threats, enabling faster responses to emerging threats such as hypersonic missiles.

Jeff Schrader, vice president of Lockheed Martin Space, highlighted the use of “smart satellite” technology in the LEO rocket-tracking satellites the company produces for the Space Development Agency.

Smart satellites work like an iPhone with third-party apps, he said. “Once it’s in orbit, you’ll be able to upload artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms,” Schrader said. “We are developing next-generation AI/ML algorithms for OPIR that we could port to SDA to observe and track weak targets.”