Northrop Grumman to supply GEO-6 satellite navigation system

Woodland Hills, California – Northrop Grumman Corp. has been selected by prime contractor Lockheed Martin to provide the space inertial reference system for the U.S. Air Force's sixth Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite.

 

Northrop Grumman will provide its Scalable Space Inertial Reference Unit (Scalable SIRU) for sensor pointing/stabilization and attitude control on the SBIRS GEO-6 space vehicle. Northrop Grumman has also provided its Scalable SIRU for previous SBIRS GEO satellites, including GEO-5, following the 2014 contract award.

 

"Northrop Grumman has been steadfast in providing Lockheed Martin with crucial components on SBIRS," said David Sheridan, Lockheed Martin vice president and SBIRS program director. "Our team is assuring that SBIRS production will continue to yield vital capabilities for the Air Force's early warning missions."

 

The SBIRS program delivers early warning of ballistic missile launches, missile defense, technical intelligence, and battlespace awareness. The system's architecture features a mix of GEO satellites, hosted payloads in Highly Elliptical Orbit, and ground hardware and software.

 

The Scalable SIRU has proven its performance during numerous space missions, including NASA's MESSENGER mission to orbit Mercury and the Global Precipitation Measurement mission. At the heart of the Scalable SIRU is Northrop Grumman's patented hemispherical resonator gyro, which has been used in space without a mission failure for more than 30 million operating hours.