WASHINGTON — Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has won a $446.8 million contract from the U.S. Space Force to build and operate the ground system for a new constellation of missile-warning satellites in medium Earth orbit.
The contract covers ground management and integration for the service’s Resilient Missile Warning and Tracking program, according to a March 19 statement from Space Systems Command.
Kratos will provide the systems used to operate the satellites after launch, including sending commands, receiving sensor data and processing that information for delivery to military operators.
The work supports a constellation being deployed in phases. The first 12 satellites, known as Epoch 1, are being built by Millennium Space Systems, a Boeing subsidiary. A second set of 10 satellites, called Epoch 2, is under contract to BAE Systems. Launches are expected over the next several years.
The satellites are designed to detect and track missile launches, from intercontinental ballistic missiles to harder-to-follow hypersonic weapons that can maneuver during flight. The data they collect will feed into the broader U.S. missile defense architecture.
The Space Force is adding satellites in medium Earth orbit as part of a shift toward a layered missile-warning network. Systems in geosynchronous orbit have long provided early warning of missile launches, while a newer layer of satellites in low Earth orbit is being developed to improve tracking of dimmer, maneuvering targets.
Medium Earth orbit sits between those regimes, offering wider coverage than low Earth orbit while providing better viewing angles than geosynchronous systems for tracking objects flying through the upper atmosphere.
Kratos, based in San Diego, focuses on software-based satellite ground systems. In November 2024, the company won a $116.7 million contract from the Space Development Agency to develop and operate a ground system for a separate constellation of missile-defense satellites in low Earth orbit.