SpaceNews.com
• Sandra Erwin
Northrop Grumman is emphasizing its longstanding role in military space surveillance as the U.S. Space Force opens the in-orbit surveillance market to newer companies. The shift introduces competition in a mission area where established defense contractors bring experience, while new entrants seek a share of emerging government demand.
Space Force
Latest source-backed stories
Northrop Grumman is emphasizing its longstanding role in military space surveillance as the U.S. Space Force opens the in-orbit surveillance market to newer companies. The shift introduces competition in a mission area where established defense contractors bring experience, while new entrants seek a share of emerging government demand.
The Air Force is preparing to select a contractor to build and equip U.S. Space Command’s new headquarters in Alabama, a project now estimated to cost approximately $4 billion. The selection will advance a major military facility project, though no contractor or schedule is identified in the available report.
SpaceX launched a classified U.S. Space Force mission from California on Oct. 15, its 114th Falcon 9 flight of the year. The company said the booster landed on a droneship.
Gen. Stephen Whiting says the military needs the ability to fight an adversary’s fleet of low Earth orbit satellites, identifying gaps in current space arms. The remarks underscore the growing focus on countering satellite constellations as a military capability.
High activity
The Army is expanding its new Space Operations Branch as it develops capabilities to counter adversaries’ use of satellites to track and target ground forces. It plans tests of high-altitude balloons and stratospheric payloads next year, and has already rushed balloons to support operations in the Middle East.
The Space Force says its electromagnetic warfare systems are playing a key role in U.S. military operations around the world. A Wall Street Journal report, based on a visit to a Colorado base, examines the systems and their use in operations involving Iran and Venezuela.
Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia are vying to host Germany’s European Space Component Command and Space Safety and Security Academy. Accessibility could prove decisive in selecting the location, positioning the outcome as an early test of how Germany will organize its space-security institutions.
Create a free account to see more recent Space Force stories and keep bookmarks in one place.
