By BlueShift | 2025-08-01

US Space Force in June awarded BAE Systems a $1.2 billion contract to provide missile tracking satellites.

The contract award, announced on June 2, covers 10 Epoch 2 satellites for the second phase of Space Force's Resilient Missile Warning and Tracking (MWT) medium Earth orbit (MEO) program.

The program is focused on the rapid acquisition of robust infrared sensing technology and integrating it into an entirely new satellite constellation in MEO, according to a Space Force statement.

The constellation is designed to detect and track a range of threats, from large, bright intercontinental ballistic missile launches to dim, maneuvering hypersonic missiles.

MEO sits between 2,000km and 35,000km above the Earth's surface, in between low Earth orbit (LEO) and high Earth orbit (HEO).

The main purpose of the Epoch 2 satellites in particular is to provide resilient global hypersonic missile tracking access.

Space Force plans to receive new MEO satellites in "Epochs" every two years. Epochs 1 and 2 are set to provide initial capability for tracking hypersonic missile threats, the statement said.

Space Force contracted Millennium Space Systems to build 12 satellites for Epoch 1, with the first six scheduled for delivery in late 2026, Defense News reported.

The first delivery of Epoch 2 is planned for fiscal year 2029.

"Epoch 2 is in alignment with the Chief of Space Operation's [sic] top priority to provide accurate real-time information to decision-makers," said Lt. Col. Brandon Castillo, materiel leader, Epoch 2 program office.

"This allows for additional resiliency in the missile warning and tracking satellite architecture," he added.