A constellation of satellites is soon completed. This Thursday, an American Atlas V rocket took off from Cape Canaveral in Florida. On board was the SBIRS GEO-6 satellite developed for the US military. It is the sixth such spacecraft to enter Earth’s orbit since 2011, and it will be the last.
The objective of this new satellite, which is part of the Space-Based Indrared System (SBIRS, Infrared System in Space in French), is to be able to control all ballistic missile launches around the globe, in order to quickly calculate their trajectory. Thanks to this, the Americans want to be able to intercept some of these missiles when they deem it necessary.
This project, which experienced many difficulties, in particular financial, replaced several systems that had already been operational on the US side since the 1970s. The US military has constantly improved its detection capabilities over the years, in particular to adapt to the various conflicts in which it faces. the country participated.
Chinese, Russian and North Korean threats
“The sensor continuously scans the Earth and provides strategic missile warning capability. Data from the scanner will also contribute to theater of war and intelligence missions,” the US Air Force said in a statement.
Col. Brian Denaro, executive officer of Space Systems Command’s Space Sensing Directorate, told Air Force Mag that the satellite is an “eye wide open for tracking and defending against ballistic and hypersonic threats.” A reference to the hypersonic missiles developed by various countries such as China and Russia, which are so fast that they are very difficult to intercept. Moscow also claims to have tried this successfully in the conflict between it and Ukraine.
A new system in 2025
In addition to hypersonic missiles, the Americans also want to succeed in intercepting intercontinental missiles. This weapon is specially developed by the North Korean military. In 2017, the United States passed a test to intercept one of them for the first time, but they certainly want to continue to improve in terms of accuracy.
Especially since the United States does not intend to stop there. In fact, the army is already working on the launch of the next infrared systems that should be deployed from 2025. However, the SBIRS system will remain operational for a long time after 2025, to ensure the transition to more advanced satellites.
Source: BFM TV
