CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE
STATION, Fla., Jan. 10, 2017
/PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Air Force's next Space Based Infrared
System (SBIRS) Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite, built by
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), was encapsulated on Jan. 7 at Cape
Canaveral, Florida, where it will launch on Jan. 19 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V
rocket. Encapsulation refers to the sealing of the satellite in a
protective launch vehicle fairing—one of the last steps a satellite
must undergo before launch.
The SBIRS GEO Flight 3 satellite is the latest to join an
orbiting network of satellites equipped with powerful scanning and
staring sensors that collect and transmit infrared surveillance
information to relay ground stations. This information is used by
the U.S. military to detect missile launches, support ballistic
missile defense, expand technical intelligence gathering and
bolster situational awareness on the battlefield. While SBIRS'
primary mission is strategic missile warning, infrared data will
also be made available for new qualified military and civilian uses
at the Air Force's recently opened Tools, Applications and
Processing Lab in Boulder,
Colorado.
"The satellite's successful delivery and encapsulation closes
out a manufacturing process that Lockheed Martin has continued to
streamline with each build, driving significant schedule and cost
reductions into the SBIRS program," said David Sheridan, vice president of Lockheed
Martin's Overhead Persistent Infrared systems mission area. "With
its launch, the addition of GEO Flight 3 into the constellation
will greatly enhance SBIRS' ability to provide resilient,
space-based infrared surveillance capabilities for decades to
come."
The satellite's journey to launch began at Lockheed Martin's
Sunnyvale, California, facility,
where it was built, integrated and thoroughly tested. For its trip
to Florida, the satellite was
loaded aboard a C-5 Galaxy aircraft at nearby Moffett Federal Air
Field.
The next SBIRS satellite, GEO Flight 4, is in storage and will
undergo final assembly, integration and test prior to its planned
2017 launch. SBIRS GEO-5 and GEO-6, which are currently in
production, incorporate Lockheed Martin's new modernized A2100
spacecraft to dramatically reduce costs and cycle times while
increasing the potential to incorporate future advanced sensor
suites.
The SBIRS development team is led by the Remote Sensing Systems
Directorate at the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center,
Los Angeles Air Force Base,
California. Lockheed Martin Space
Systems, Sunnyvale, California, is
the SBIRS prime contractor, with Northrop Grumman Aerospace
Systems, Azusa, California, as the
payload integrator. The 460th Space Wing, Buckley Air Force Base,
Colorado, operates the SBIRS
system.
For additional SBIRS information, photos and video visit:
www.lockheedmartin.com/sbirs.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a
global security and aerospace company that employs approximately
98,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research,
design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of
advanced technology systems, products and services.
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SOURCE Lockheed Martin