According to Associated Press news service, the US military has activated a high powered X-band radar outpost in Aomori Prefecture, Japan to protect against ballistic missiles, amid growing concerns of North Korean weapons programs. It is part of the joint US-Japan missile defense project that began in 1998 after North Korea fired a long range missile over Japan. The radar had been located on Misawa AB, Japan, and is now at Camp Shariki, both in Aomori.
The Space Development Agency says it’s on track to issue its next batch of missile warning and tracking satellite contracts this month after those awards were delayed by the Pentagon’s decision to divert funds from the agency to pay troops during this fall’s prolonged government shutdown.

