List of USA satellites

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This is a list of satellites and spacecraft which have been given USA designations by the United States Air Force. These designations have been applied to most United States military satellites since 1984, and replaced the earlier OPS designation.

Contents

As of June 2022, USA designations have been assigned to 331 space satellites. There is not always a one-to-one mapping between launch vehicles and mission spacecraft. This can occasionally result in gaps when maintaining records that incorrectly make that assumption, such as the "missing" entries for USA-163 (which are, symmetrically, contemporary with confusion over "splitting" spacecraft tracks). [1]

List

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northrop Grumman Pegasus</span> Air-launched rocket

Pegasus is an air-launched multistage rocket developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC) and later built and launched by Northrop Grumman. Pegasus is the world's first privately developed orbital launch vehicle. Capable of carrying small payloads of up to 443 kg (977 lb) into low Earth orbit, Pegasus first flew in 1990 and remained active as of 2021. The vehicle consists of three solid propellant stages and an optional monopropellant fourth stage. Pegasus is released from its carrier aircraft at approximately 12,000 m (39,000 ft) using a first stage wing and a tail to provide lift and altitude control while in the atmosphere. The first stage does not have a thrust vector control (TVC) system.

Orbital Sciences Corporation was an American company specializing in the design, manufacture, and launch of small- and medium- class space and launch vehicle systems for commercial, military and other government customers. In 2014, Orbital merged with Alliant Techsystems (ATK) to create a new company called Orbital ATK, which in turn was purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SpaceX</span> American private spacecraft company

Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, commonly referred to as SpaceX, is an American spacecraft manufacturer, launch service provider and satellite communications company headquartered at the SpaceX Starbase near Brownsville, Texas after first being established in 2002 in Southern California, where it still has significant operations. The company was founded by Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation costs by designing for reusability and ultimately developing a sustainable colony on Mars. SpaceX currently produces and operates the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets along with the Dragon spacecraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minotaur (rocket family)</span> Family of American rockets

The Minotaur is a family of United States solid-fuel launch vehicles repurposed from retired Minuteman and Peacekeeper model intercontinental ballistic missiles. Built by Northrop Grumman under the Space Force's Rocket Systems Launch Program, these vehicles are used for various space and test launch missions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Launch Alliance</span> Joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing

United Launch Alliance, LLC (ULA) is an American launch service provider formed in December 2006 as a joint venture between Lockheed Martin Space and Boeing Defense, Space & Security. The company designs, assembles, sells and launches rockets, but the company subcontracts out the production of rocket engines and solid rocket boosters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minotaur I</span> Space launch vehicle

The Minotaur I, or just Minotaur is an American expendable launch system derived from the Minuteman II missile. It is used to launch small satellites for the US Government, and is a member of the Minotaur family of rockets produced by Orbital Sciences Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus (spacecraft)</span> Uncrewed cargo spacecraft developed by Orbital Sciences

Cygnus is an expendable American automated cargo spacecraft designed for International Space Station (ISS) resupply missions. Initially developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation with financial support from NASA under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. To create Cygnus, Orbital paired a pressurized cargo module, largely based on the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, built by Thales Alenia Space and previously used by the Space Shuttle for ISS resupply, with a service module based on Orbital's GEOStar, a satellite bus. After a successful demonstration flight in 2013, Orbital was chosen to receive a Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract. A larger Enhanced Cygnus was introduced in 2015. Orbital Sciences was renamed Orbital ATK in 2015 and Northrop Grumman purchased Orbital in 2018 and has continued to operate Cygnus missions. A further enlarged Mission B Cygnus is expected to be introduced in 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commercial Resupply Services</span> NASA program for delivery of cargo to the ISS

Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) are a series of flights awarded by NASA for the delivery of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) on commercially operated spacecraft.

On-orbit satellite servicing refers to refueling or repairing space satellites while in orbit.

Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP) or Hornet is a class of United States spy satellites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orbital ATK</span> American aerospace and defense company

Orbital ATK Inc. was an American aerospace manufacturer and defense industry company. It was formed in February 9, 2015 from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of Alliant Techsystems (ATK). Orbital ATK designed, built, and delivered rocket engines, military vehicles, firearms, autocannons, missiles, ammunition, precision-guided munitions, satellites, missile approach warning systems, launch vehicles and spacecraft. The company was acquired by Northrop Grumman on June 6, 2018. The former Orbital ATK operations were renamed Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems and operated as a division until January 1, 2020 when a reorganization merged the operations into the company's other divisions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-10</span> Late 2018 cargo mission to the ISS

NG-10, previously known as OA-10E, is the eleventh flight of the Northrop Grumman uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its tenth flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 17 November 2018, at 09:01:31 UTC. This particular mission is part of an extension of the initial CRS contract that enables NASA to cover the ISS resupply needs until the Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) contract enters in effect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OmegA</span> Canceled US launch vehicle

OmegA was a medium-lift to heavy-lift launch vehicle concept that spent several years in development by Northrop Grumman during 2016–2020, with that development substantially funded by the U.S. government. OmegA was intended for launching U.S. national security satellites, as part of the U.S. Department of the Air Force National Security Space Launch (NSSL) replacement program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zuma (satellite)</span> Classified United States government satellite

USA-280 was a classified United States government satellite that was launched by SpaceX on 8 January 2018, on the 47th flight of the Falcon 9 rocket. The National Reconnaissance Office was in charge of the Zuma project, though its purpose has not been disclosed. In November 2017, Northrop Grumman stated that the launch "is a monumental responsibility and has taken great care to ensure the most affordable and lowest risk scenario for Zuma." The Wall Street Journal reported that the design was very sensitive to vibration and sudden shocks, and had a development cost approaching US$3.5 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-15</span> 2021 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

Cygnus NG-15, previously known as OA-15, was the fifteenth launch of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its fourteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 20 February 2021 at 17:36:50 UTC. This is the fourth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-16</span> 2021 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-16, previously known as OA-16, was the sixteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its fifteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The mission was launched on 10 August 2021 at 22:01:05 UTC, for a (planned) 90-day mission at the ISS. This was the fifth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-17</span> 2022 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-17, previously known as OA-17, was the seventeenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its sixteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 19 February 2022 at 17:40:03 UTC. It was the sixth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

References

  1. 1 2 "SeeSat-L - Milstar 5 on OIG". SeeSat-L. 16 January 2002. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  2. ↑ "Stacksat (POGS & SSR / TEX / SCE)". Gunter's Space Page. 25 July 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  3. 1 2 "Stacksat P87-2". Astronautix.com. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  4. ↑ Berger, Brian; March 2015, Mike Gruss 02 (2 March 2015). "20-Year-Old Military Weather Satellite Apparently Exploded in Orbit". Space.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ Gibson, Hillary (14 December 2022). "SpOC officially retires DSCS satellite". Space Operations Command . United States Space Force . Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  6. ↑ Lafleur, Claude (1 October 2004). "Spacecrafts [sic] Launched in 2001" . Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  7. ↑ Graham, William (11 March 2011). "Delta IV dodges upper level winds and launches with NROL-27 satellite". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  8. ↑ "NASA - NSSDC - Spacecraft - Details". National Space Science Data Center . Retrieved 1 October 2012.
  9. 1 2 Erwin, Sandra (14 March 2022). "DoD decommissions two missile-tracking satellites after 12 years in orbit". SpaceNews . Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  10. ↑ "Jonathan's Space Report No. 640". Jonathan McDowell. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
  11. ↑ "USA 238". National Space Data Science Center. NASA. Retrieved 24 December 2012.
  12. ↑ "United Launch Alliance Delta IV Successfully Launches Global Positioning System Satellite for the US Air Force". United Launch Alliance. 4 October 2012. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 24 December 2012.
  13. ↑ "OTV-3". National Space Data Science Center. NASA. Retrieved 24 December 2012.
  14. ↑ Gruss, Mike (25 July 2016). "U.S. Air Force blames power failure for loss of DMSP-F19 weather satellite". SpaceNews.
  15. ↑ "CLIO Atlas V Mission Overview" (PDF). United Launch Alliance. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  16. ↑ Berger, Eric (8 January 2018). "It's not official, but sources say the secretive Zuma satellite was lost". Ars Technica . Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  17. ↑ Pasztor, Andy (9 April 2018). "Probes Point to Northrop Grumman Errors in January Spy-Satellite Failure". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  18. ↑ Sheetz, Michael (9 April 2018). "Northrop Grumman, not SpaceX, reported to be at fault for loss of top-secret Zuma satellite". Yahoo! Finance. CNBC. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  19. ↑ Grush, Loren (9 January 2018). "Did SpaceX's secret Zuma mission actually fail?". The Verge . Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  20. ↑ "Exclusive: Musk's SpaceX is building spy satellite network for US intelligence agency, sources say". Reuters. 16 March 2023.
  21. ↑ "Exclusive: Musk's SpaceX is building spy satellite network for US intelligence agency, sources say". Reuters. 16 March 2023.
  22. ↑ Jonathan McDowell [@planet4589] (21 August 2022). "Space-Track has cataloged USA 337, a new payload (presumably 100 kg ESPASat class) ejected from the USSF 12 Ring spacecraft launched on Jul 1 to near-synchronous orbit. However, the orbital elements are currently secret. Catalog is 53521 (2022-073E)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  23. ↑ "USN support of the geosynchronous test spacecraft USUVL from USN's Hawaiian earth station". U.S. Space Force. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
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