Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Lockheed Martin completes production of new SBIRS GEO-5 missile warning satellite

The top-grossing defense firm in the world Lockheed Martin has announced that the new SBIRS GEO-5 missile warning satellite being completed.

As noted by the company, the Space Based Infrared System Geosynchronous Earth Orbit satellite (SBIRS GEO-5) – the first military space satellite built on Lockheed Martin’s new, modernized LM 2100 bus – was completed in just about five years.  That speed is pretty unheard of for satellites these days.

Built in a record time and at no additional cost to the government for the upgrade, SBIRS GEO-5 is the first military space satellite built on the company’s modernized, modular LM 2100™ combat bus. SBIRS GEO-6, launching in 2022, is also being built on the new bus designed for speed and resilience.

- ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW -

“SBIRS’ role as an ever-present, on-orbit guardian against global ballistic missile threats has never been more critical,” said Tom McCormick, Lockheed Martin’s vice president for Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR) Systems. “In 2019 alone, SBIRS detected nearly one thousand missile launches, which is about a two-fold increase in two years.”

“Completing the production of a complex missile-warning satellite during the challenging COVID environment is a huge accomplishment and is a testament to Lockheed Martin’s professionalism and dedication to the security of our Nation,” said Capt. Alec Cook, Space and Missile Systems Center’s SBIRS GEO-5/6 Assembly, Test, and Launch Operations lead.

Both SBIRS GEO-5 and GEO-6 are slated to join the U.S. Space Force’s constellation of missile warning satellites, equipped with powerful scanning and staring infrared surveillance sensors, which protect our nation 24-7. These sensors collect data that allow the U.S. military to detect missile launches, support ballistic missile defense, expand technical intelligence gathering and bolster situational awareness on the battlefield.

SBIRS GEO-5 was officially completed on Oct. 29, 2020. Currently, the new missile warning satellite is ready for launch in 2021.

Lockheed Martin-built SBIRS GEO-5 Mission Warning Satellite in Acoustic Testing

If you would like to show your support for what we are doing, here's where to do it.

If you wish to report grammatical or factual errors within our news articles, you can let us know by using the online feedback form.

Executive Editor

About author:

Colton Jones
Colton Jones
Colton Jones is the deputy editor of Defence Blog. He is a US-based journalist, writer and publisher who specializes in the defense industry in North America and Europe. He has written about emerging technology in military magazines and elsewhere. He is a former Air Force airmen and served at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE

TRENDING NOW

HIMARS blew up Russian BUK air defense system

Ukrainian Special Operations Forces destroyed a Russian BUK surface-to-air missile system in the Zaporizhzhia region, in the southern part of the country. According to statements...