Naomi Cooper
L3Harris Technologies has selected Maxar Technologies to design and build 14 spacecraft platforms in support of its development of missile warning and tracking satellites for the Space Development Agency.
The spacecraft will be part of SDA’s Tranche 1 Tracking Layer constellation of low-Earth satellites meant to enable the Department of Defense to track conventional and advanced missile threats, including hypersonic missile systems, Maxar said Tuesday.
The satellites will be integrated with various mission payloads, including infrared sensors, optical terminals for space mesh networking and Ka-band communications.
Work also covers the provision of related ground, operations and sustainment support services.
The company will manufacture the modular satellite platforms at its facilities in Palo Alto and San Jose, California, and delivery is expected to commence in 2024.
“This program demonstrates that Maxar is primed to handle a diverse set of missions, and it exemplifies how our technology and experience are optimized to bring rapidly deployed, proliferated [low Earth orbit] constellations to market,” said Chris Johnson, senior vice president and general manager of space at Maxar.
L3Harris has secured a $700 million contract to build and deploy the satellite constellation and provide ground operations and equipment for the first tranche of the National Defense Space Architecture’s tracking layer.
