Two of the key companies working on the missile warning satellite for the USA are Millennium Space Systems and Raytheon Intelligence & Space. The US intends to launch a similar system in 2026 that can track and find hypersonic missiles. Both businesses successfully completed a key review on November 28, 2022, giving them the go-ahead to build the project’s subsequent phase.

The examination confirmed the capabilities of the sensors and the objectives specified for the demo phase. The plan is to move from the demo phase to the development phase, which both firms will soon begin.

According to a spokeswoman for the US Space Force, the businesses used digital engineering-based models and demonstrations to show that the designs of elements, including the focal plane, electronics, software, and telescope, are suitable for manufacture. The satellite in MEO will work in tandem with the current Space Based Infrared Systems (SBIRS) networks to track missile launches and hypersonic gliders from geosynchronous Earth and highly elliptical orbits.

Now let us understand what SBIRS Low is; the United States Missile Defense Agency (MDA) created a pair of satellites known as the Space Tracking and Surveillance System (STSS) (formerly SBIRS-Low) to study the space-based detection and tracking of ballistic missiles. Incoming missiles could be intercepted earlier than possible with other missile detection systems thanks to information from STSS satellites. Therefore the different orbits will have different missile satellites to keep national security intact.

Considering the current missile warning system, one of the significant challenges in developing would be its cyber security. The companies must be vigilant in understanding and complying with the cyber security rule as the whole mission objective is protecting the country’s National Security.

https://spacenews.com/demonstration-of-new-layer-of-missile-warning-satellites-planned-for-2026/