Space Force grants Northrop Grumman $1.8B to build missile warning birds for polar orbit

WASHINGTON — The Space Force’s multibillion-dollar Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared (Next-Gen OPIR) missile warning constellation has taken another step forward with Northrop Grumman getting the green light, and almost $1.8 billion, to finalize development of its two polar orbiting satellites.

Under the modification to the company’s original 2020 contract, the company will “complete the effort through satellite build, launch, and transition to operations,” the Space Systems Command (SSC) said in an announcement Wednesday. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to nearly $4.2 billion, it added.

The two Northrop Grumman satellites, which will take highly elliptical orbits over the Earth’s poles, are expected to be launched in 2028. They are one half of the overarching Next-Gen OPIR constellation, which also includes two satellites to be stationed in geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) being built by Lockheed Martin. Those satellites are scheduled to be launched in late 2025, although there is some concern that date may slip.

Together, the satellites will replace the current missile warning constellation, the Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS). All six dedicated SBIRS satellites in GEO are operational as of last March. There also are two SBIRS sensors operating as hosted payloads on classified satellites in highly elliptical orbits over the poles.

The total cost for the new satellites is estimated at $14 billion, making Next-Gen OPIR the Space Force’s most expensive program.

The effort also includes developed of a new ground system, called Future Operationally Resilient Ground Evolution (FORGE), to provide day-to-day operations and command and control (C2) for the four Next-Gen OPIR satellites, and eventually of all the service’s missile warning constellations. FORGE, led by RTX (formerly Raytheon), long has been suffering from developmental problems, with the Government Accountability Office last June warning key pieces of the multi-faceted ground system would not be ready in time to provide C2 for the first of the Next-Gen OPIR satellites.

In April, SSC announced [PDF] that a first cybersecurity software package for FORGE system was put into operations at the Overhead Persistent Infrared Battlespace Awareness Center at Buckley SFB in Colorado.

“We’re going to deliver another instantiation later this this year, and anticipate operational acceptance next year of FORGE,” Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant, SSC commander, told Breaking Defense in an exclusive interview in September.