Tuesday, March 5, 2024

Lockheed targets Terran • US Space Command warns of ‘window of vulnerability’

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National security insights for space professionals. Delivered Tuesdays.

In this week's edition:

• Space M&A heats up as Lockheed targets Terran

• U.S. Space Command warns of 'window of vulnerability'

• Boeing gets $439 million contract for WGS-12

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Today's highlights:

Illustration of Terran Orbital's Voyager nano satellite

Lockheed Martin is making waves with an unsolicited bid to acquire small-satellite manufacturer Terran Orbital.

If the acquisition goes through, Lockheed Martin would join the ranks of fellow defense giants Boeing and Raytheon in bolstering their space capabilities through the purchase of a small-satellite manufacturer.

Boeing acquired Millennium Space Systems in 2018.
Raytheon purchased Blue Canyon Technologies in 2020.
Lockheed Martin is already the largest stockholder of Terran Orbital with nearly one-third of the company's shares.

Lockheed Martin is also a major customer of Terran Orbital. With this acquisition, it is seeking to lock down a bigger foothold in the small-satellite market as the Space Force and intelligence agencies clamor for smaller, cheaper satellites that can be launched frequently.

Terran Orbital's shareholders, according to media reports, are attempting to thwart Lockheed's proposal, claiming the $1 share price offered is too low.

Industry watchers told SpaceNews that Lockheed Martin's offer came as no surprise given the defense contractor's previous strategic investment and dependence on Terran Orbital to produce satellite buses for key military programs.

The nation's top space commander warned Congress that the U.S. faces a "window of vulnerability" from China's and Russia's rapidly developing anti-satellite weapons aimed at crippling American military assets in orbit.

Gen. Stephen Whiting, head of U.S. Space Command, speaking at a Senate Armed Services hearing on Thursday, singled out Beijing's growing number of spy satellites designed to monitor, track and target U.S. forces.

Whiting's testimony underscored the new reality facing the U.S. military after decades of operating unchallenged. It also highlighted the intensifying competition between Washington and Beijing to gain the strategic high ground in space.
While the U.S. pioneered military space capabilities, Whiting said, rivals are plowing investment into weapons designed to deny America that crucial advantage.

Don't miss:

Join us tomorrow March 6 at 11 a.m. for an exclusive online event with Derek Tournear, Director of the Space Development Agency, as we take a look back at SDA's remarkable journey over the past five years.

In other news 🚀

Firefly Aerospace announced a major expansion at its rocket manufacturing facility in Briggs, Texas, as part of its partnership with Northrop Grumman to build a medium-size launch vehicle.

The company added two test stands and new machinery to support the production of Northrop Grumman's Antares 330 and the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) the companies are co-developing.

The company, which operates a small launcher named Alpha, also built a new higher thrust engine stand to test its Miranda and Vira engines.

Rocket Lab is preparing to launch the NROL-123 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office from Launch Complex 2 in Wallops, Virginia.

The mission, projected to fly no earlier than March 20, will be Rocket Lab's first launch for the NRO from the United States. The company previously launched four NRO missions from Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula.

Umbra says it has made over $4 million worth of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data available to the public via the Open Data Program the Santa Barbara, California-based satellite operator launched a year ago. Users can directly access Umbra's open data catalog through AWS and SkyFi.

The Space Force awarded Boeing a $439.6 million contract to build a military communications satellite known as WGS-12.

WGS-12 will be the 12th satellite of the Wideband Global Satcom geostationary constellation that provides communications services to the United States and allies.

Boeing has been the WGS prime contractor since 2001. The first satellite was launched in 2007.