LMSS contracted Raytheon in February 2010 to build OCX for GPS III. Contractors involved in the military communication satellite’s development It will be incorporated with a space ground link system, enhanced crosslink transponder subsystems, onboard computer and mission data unit. The satellite will be tracked and controlled by a telemetry tracking and command (TT&C) system. Communications between the GCS and the spacecraft will be enabled through the NCE. The ground control station (GCS) of GPS III will be equipped with operational control segment (OCX) to supervise and support the current and future GPS constellations. Ground control station (GCS) for LMSS’s spacecraft The bus will house an attitude control system, electrical power system, thermal control system, propulsion system and mechanical system. The A2100 will provide mobile communications, direct broadcast, multimedia, high-speed broadband and business services. GPS III will use the A2100 satellite bus, a fully redundant flight proven spacecraft bus designed and being built by Skunk Works at the Astro Space East Windsor facility, in New Jersey. The GPS III will be equipped with a nickel hydrogen rechargeable battery, bipropellant hydrazine propulsion system, NTO oxidiser, 100lbs liquid apogee engines, unified S-band transponder, network communication element (NCE), navigation payload element (NPE), hosted payload element and antenna subsystem element. The spacecraft will be made up of lightweight composite materials to maximise strength, minimise thermal distortions and decrease launch costs. The critical and system design reviews were completed in August 2010 and July 2011 respectively.įour unfolded 307ft² highly efficient UTJ solar arrays will be attached to the central core structure to provide electricity during power failure. Its preliminary design review (PDR) was completed in May 2009. The spacecraft is designed to deliver three times higher quality signals and three times more power compared with conventional GPS constellations. It will weigh around 3,680kg at launch and consume 15kW of power. The GPS III is designed for a lifespan of 15 years. "The spacecraft is scheduled for launch atop either the Atlas V (401) or Delta-4M+ (4.2) vehicle in 2015." LMSS is planning to build up to 32 GPS III space vehicles. It received over $200m funding in December 2013 to complete the fifth and sixth GPS III satellites, and expects to secure funding for the seventh and eighth satellites in 2014. LMSS secured two fixed-price contracts worth $120m from the USAF in February 2013 to begin work on the next four GPS III satellites. An additional contract worth $238m was awarded by the USAF in January 2012 to build the third and fourth GPS III spacecraft. LMSS was contracted by the USAF in May 2008 to design and construct two GPS III spacecraft with an option for ten additional spacecraft. Orders and deliveries to the United States Air Force (USAF) The 40,000 square feet GPS III processing facility (GPF) was officially inaugurated by LMSS in February 2012 to develop and examine GPS III satellites. The first satellite is expected to be delivered in mid-2014. LMSS was awarded a $21.5m contract by the USAF in January 2012 to execute launch and checkout capability (LCC) for all GPS III satellites.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |