The U.S. Air Force’s 5th Space Infrared System Geosynchronous Orbit (SBIRS GEO-5) missile defense warning satellite was launched from Cape Canaveral on the 18th. The satellite is capable of monitoring and tracking global land-based ballistic missile launches 24 hours a day, providing critical early warning time for U.S. homeland and overseas military forces.
45 minutes after liftoff into orbit, infrared early warning system powerhouse
The SBIRS GEO-5 satellite was launched by the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket and reached its intended orbit just 45 minutes after liftoff. SBIRS) system.
SBIRS is primarily deployed in geosynchronous orbit (GEO) at 35,000 kilometers from the earth’s surface, as well as multiple satellites in highly elliptical orbit (HEO), to create early warning of land-based ballistic missiles, provide target tracking for ballistic defense systems, and even capture part of the battlefield infrared imaging information.
When Iran launched multiple ballistic missiles toward U.S. bases in Iraq in January 2020, SBIRS effectively issued a warning to garrison troops to urgently find cover, and according to TAC estimates, SBIRS detected nearly 1,000 ballistic missile launch profiles throughout 2019.
GEO-6 Scheduled for 2022 Liftoff
Before the GEO-5 launch, the U.S. military has completed the deployment of four GEO satellites and two HEO satellites in the SBIRS system, but Lockheed Martin used the “New Generation LM2100 series modular carrier” technology to build GEO-5, which will replace the GEO-1 launched in 2011, as for the last one SBIRS GEO-6 is scheduled to be launched in 2022.
Originally, the U.S. also intended to send GEO-7 and GEO-8 to orbit, but under the threat of polar sonic weapons, the U.S. Congress deleted the budget for these two satellites in 2018 and requested the Pentagon to accelerate investment in the Continuous Infrared Satellite (OPIR) detection system that can detect polar sonic weapons, to replace SBIRS.
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