Northrop Grumman announced Thursday that the two space tracking and surveillance system demonstration satellites that it built together with Raytheon successfully detected and tracked a missile over the Pacific Ocean during a Missile Defense Agency flight test last month. “The STSS satellites operated as expected and the system generated high-quality track data during the boost phase,” said Gabe Watson, Northrop’s vice president for missile defense and missile warning programs. During the June 6 test, a two-stage ground-based interceptor missile was launched from Vandenberg AFB, Calif. It was the inaugural flight of this GBI variant. The two STSS satellites were placed into low Earth orbit last September. They are designed to validate technology for space-based tracking of ballistic missiles throughout their flight trajectories. They are also helping MDA officials mature concepts of operation for a future operational constellation of such missile-tracking satellites.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
