Artist depiction of a hypersonic missile. Image from Shutterstock.

General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced on 11 March 2024, that it has won a contract from Lockheed Martin to provide hypersonic missile defence through the Space Development Agency (SDA) Tranche 2 (T2) Tracking Layer Programme and its 18 satellites. 

The new contract covers missile warning, tracking and defence payloads that will integrate into the Lockheed Martin satellites, scheduled for launch in 2027. The satellites will be placed into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to provide a persistent real-time missile detection and tracking capability that tracks missiles in real time through on-orbit mission data processing, according to a release from General Atomics. 

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“We look forward to our payloads becoming an integral element of a satellite constellation providing significant military operational support for the detection and tracking of advanced and conventional missile threats, including hypersonic missile systems,” said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. 

16 Wide-Field-of-View (WFOV) Missile Warning/Missile Tracking infrared payloads and two Fire Control/Missile Defence (FC/MD) infrared payloads are part of a set of Electro Optical and Infrared (EO/IR) sensor systems GA-EMS intends to develop for the programme. 

“GA-EMS’ dedicated optical sensor team specialises in the design and deployment of compact, high-performance, and affordable EO/IR sensor system solutions, that are ideally suited for this next-generation in missile tracking payloads” said Dr. Steven Wein, senior director of GA-EMS Optical Sensor Systems.

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 “Our in-house, end-to-end payload systems’ expertise is key to our ability to rapidly innovate and deliver these cost-effective, highly advanced solutions critical to our national security interests. The missile warning, tracking, and defence payloads add to our expanding portfolio of high-performance surveillance and sensing assets, including our compact, 16 spectral band EO/IR weather sensors for the US Space Force’s EO/IR Weather System (EWS) satellite program.”

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Lockheed Martin was awarded the contract to supply 18 satellites for the T2 Tracking Layer on 16 January 2024, for $890m, in a deal that stipulated the space vehicles would be equipped with the EO/IR capabilities that GA-EMS are providing.