In a current LinkedIn post by Lockheed Martin Space‘s Executive Vice President, Rick Ambrose, he posted information regarding the maintenance of Space Situational Awareness (SSA), which is also known as Space Domain Awareness (SDA).
He noted that this technology is absolutely essential to preserve a peaceful and reliable spatial environment. Greater awareness of both intentional and unintentional actions in #space improves safety for all on-orbit assets.
He noted that the Lockheed Martin Space team was recently awarded their first commercial SDA payload to help with these missions. The affordable payload uses optical sensors to detect objects from Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) and provides images of objects that come within a close distance. The company will deliver the payload to a host GEO spacecraft within just 22 months of the contract award.
Rick continued that the most recent of more than 300 payloads Lockheed Martin has built for customers, this delivery represents the first of a capability that is available to support both commercial and government interests in hosting SDA sensors. While he couldn’t say much about this specific customer, he did say he’s incredibly proud of the work the company’s team accomplished to expand Lockheed Martin’s offerings within the SDA realm.
