◆ Lockheed Martin prepares
for the first Florida rocket launch of the new year, which could take place next week.
The satellite that will hitch a ride on the year’s first rocket launch from Florida has been sealed within its protective launch vehicle.
Lockheed Martin released a photo Tuesday of the U.S. Air Force’s satellite, which will join a network of satellites in space that collect and transmit infrared surveillance information.
The so-called encapsulation took place at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Florida’s Space Coast. A 40-minute window for its launch on a United Launch Alliance rocket opens at 7:46 p.m. Thursday.
ULA is a partnership of Lockheed Martin and Boeing. The satellite will carry the Space Based Infrared System, or SBIRS, Geosynchronous Earth Orbit satellite, which Lockheed built.
The satellite helps the U.S. military detect missile launches and support missile defense, according to a Lockheed news release.
David Sheridan, vice president of Lockheed’s infrared-based division, said the launch will “greatly enhance” the infrared system’s ability for surveillance from space.
Central Florida’s launch activity has been ramping up in recent years, as multiple private space companies increase their number of launches here.
A week after ULA’s launch, SpaceX is expected to launch its first Cape Canaveral rocket on Jan. 26. In the wake of a Falcon 9 rocket explosion on the launch pad in September, which the company attributed to a pressure vessel in an oxygen tank that buckled, SpaceX has a backlog of commercial satellite launches. SpaceX has successfully landed rockets, with a goal of keeping costs down with reusability.