The US military, under the Missile Defense Agency, recently sent out their hypersonic missile-tracking satellites to orbit via SpaceX's renowned launch vehicle, the Falcon 9, last Wednesday. These payloads began their journey in Florida's Space Coast on Valentine's Day, with the capability to monitor threats sent by other nations, especially with the smaller and elusive hypersonic projectiles.
A total of six satellites were launched by SpaceX, centering on two prototypes, which would all be part of the testing program starting later this year.
SpaceX Launches the US Military's Hypersonic Missile-Tracking Satellites
(Photo : SpaceX via Getty Images)
Valentine's Day 2024 was a busy day for SpaceX as it launched two missions for the Falcon 9 in two different launch pads, one in Florida and the other in California, to deliver payloads to orbit. The Florida launch was known as the USSF-124 mission of the US Space Force and the Department of Defense, carrying a total of six satellites to deliver.
The mission was a success and it delivered the two prototypes for the Missile Defense Agency and four satellites of the US Space Force.
SpaceX brought these hypersonic missile-tracking satellites to orbit, with the US military's satellites capable of tracking the hypersonic missiles which fly more in the Earth's atmosphere and are harder to track compared to traditional ones.
Monitoring Hypersonic Projectiles: Testing Later This Year
The Space Development Agency (SDA) calls these satellites the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA). According to Ars Technica, they are set to go under testing later this year, capable of tracking the missiles and sharing information about their flight path to the surface.
The tracking information will be shared as early warnings to help interceptors shoot them down. These four satellites from SDA will soon be part of the prototype constellation known as Tranche 0. Moreover, Tranche 1 will soon be launched by SDA with the help of SpaceX and United Launch Alliance (ULA).
Space Force's Missile-Tracking Satellites
Back in 2023, Space Force asked for a massive budget that is meant to develop its hypersonic missile-tracking satellites from the US government, one that would help them proceed with creating the technology for defense. The US Space Force asked for $16 billion for this project, one that would be part of its five-year development of the satellites.
Later that December, it was reported that the Space Force, specifically with the Space Development Agency, had begun its production of the missile-tracking satellite. The hypersonic missile-tracking satellites are expected to be available come 2025, with L3Harris, its contractor, looking at 16 satellites to deliver for the SDA and Space Force, after it passed the critical design review.
The latest developments for the United States' defense see six satellites in orbit now, one that is capable of tracking the innovative hypersonic missiles that may be undetected without this technology.
Soon, the US Space Force, SDA, MDA, and the Defense will come to test the satellites this year, and more of the PWSA to arrive in the future and bolster the efforts in hypersonic missile tracking.
