Satnews:
Sponsored by the U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA), and built at Orbital ATK’s satellite manufacturing facility in Gilbert, Arizona, NFIRE was originally designed as a one-year mission to collect data from exhaust “plume” observations of boosting rockets with the intent to advance launch detection and tracking systems. The addition of the Laser Communications Terminal (LCT) expanded NFIRE’s mission to assess viability of satellite-to-satellite high speed communication links. During its eight years on orbit, NFIRE helped advance the state-of-the-art ballistic missile detection system, accomplished bi-directional satellite laser communications at will and boosted international collaboration with Germany.
NFIRE launched in April 2007 aboard an Orbital ATK Minotaur I from Wallops Island, Virginia. Orbital ATK was the system integrator for the NFIRE mission, with responsibility for the design and manufacture of the defense satellite, based on the company’s flight-proven LEOStar™ spacecraft architecture. Other contributions included payload integration, full satellite system testing, configuration of two ground mission operation centers and on-orbit operations support. Orbital ATK also led the mission assurance and systems engineering integrated product teams. After in-orbit testing was completed, the company turned the satellite over to the MDA for primary management.
NFIRE’s primary instrument has been the Track Sensor Payload, which has been able to collect data on targets of opportunity through precision detection and tracking despite environmental background clutter (i.e., atmospheric variables, clouds, land-sea visibility and more)…
