Hypersonic tracking space sensor completes final design review
NewsDecember 21, 2021
MELBOURNE, Fla. L3Harris Technologies completed the final major design milestone on the U.S. Missile Defense Agency’s (MDA) Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor (HBTSS) program Phase IIb On-orbit Prototype Demonstration and has begun building the demonstration satellite.
According to the comoany, the completion of the critical design review is the final milestone ensuring performance, cost, and schedule requirements can be met before beginning to build the satellite.
Officials claim that HBTSS is one of several proposed systems within the Department of Defense’s next-generation proliferated low-Earth orbit space architecture. The program’s objective is to demonstrate the capability to detect and track traditional and emerging missile threats using infrared sensors and advanced processing capability.
The Missile Defense Agency awarded L3Harris a study contract in 2019 and the prototype demonstration in January 2021. In December 2020, the Space Development Agency selected L3Harris to build and launch four space vehicles to demonstrate the capability to detect and track ballistic and hypersonic missiles.
