WASHINGTON — The U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) has expanded its next-generation satellite constellation to more than 100 spacecraft, the agency said Dec. 17
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket early on Tuesday morning successfully launched the latest mission, NROL-149, from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This marks the sixth deployment in the agency’s new proliferated architecture program and its final launch for 2024.
The latest launch follows on the heels of NROL-126, which took off on November 30, demonstrating a rapid pace of deployment for the intelligence agency’s ambitious space program.
The NRO, responsible for developing and operating U.S. spy satellites, is moving away from traditional large, expensive satellites toward a more distributed network of smaller spacecraft. This approach, known as proliferated architecture, aims to enhance resilience and coverage while potentially reducing vulnerability to anti-satellite weapons.
The agency began deploying its small-satellite constellation with NROL-68 in June 2023. Since then, ten missions have placed more than 100 payloads into low Earth orbit.
The NRO plans to continue expanding the constellation through 2028.
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