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First Missile Warning Satellite Put Into Orbit
An unmanned Atlas 5 rocket was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Saturday to put the first satellite of the Defense Department's new missile-warning system into orbit.Inside was a Geo-1 satellite, built by Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, containing a $1.3 billion Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS). The satellite, the first of four scheduled for launch over the next five years, is intended to provide the U.S. military with early notice of missile launches and other reconnaissance services. The $17.6 billion SBIRS constellation, which includes sensors on host satellites, will augment and eventually replace the military's Defense Support Program satellites, which have been operating since 1970. The satellites scour the planet for heat trails produced by flying rockets and missiles. Over the next nine days, Geo-1's position will be fine tuned so that it ends up in an orbit about 22,000 miles above the planet. In addition to scanning for missile launches, Geo-1 has instruments that can home in on areas of interest for tactical reconnaissance, officials said. Geo-2, the second in the constellation, is expected to be ready to launch next year, said the mission operations director for United Launch Alliance, a Boeing-Lockheed Martin partnership that builds the Atlas rockets. Posted by: Anonymoose 2011-05-07 |
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