Raytheon readies space-based “super-sensor” for missile launch warning

Washington: Raytheon has said it has completed performance tests on an infrared missile-warning sensor that will scan an entire hemisphere from a single space-based telescope. The company said the new sensor would be the "first of its kind" and would include its large-format focal-plane arrays.

The Waltham, Massachussets-based company said in a statement the super-sensor will have a better capability to "detect and track dimmer objects than sensors in current operation."

"This sensor is important to America's missile-warning capability," said Bill Hart, vice president of Raytheon's Space Systems group. "A persistent sensor that can cover the entire earth gives us the detection sensitivity and responsiveness our military forces need for time-critical decisions."

Raytheon said tests on the new sensor included "vibration, electromagnetic interference and thermal vacuum conditions to confirm performance in a simulated space environment."

"We've proved we have a design for a sensor with extremely sophisticated technology that is readily qualifiable for space flight," Hart said. "In less than 24 months, a fully flight-qualified sensor could be delivered to the government."

The company described the new sensor as the crucial element in the Third Generation Infrared System (TGIS) being developed for the US Air Force Space and Missiles Systems Center. The TGIS was earlier called the Risk Reduction Alternative Infrared Satellite System and its aim, according to Raytheon, was to develop wide-field-of-view sensors to carry out long-term "full-earth surveillance for missile warning in a relatively small, low-risk and easily manufactured payload."

Hart also said the new sensor is a significant leap forward in capabilities compared with the existing equipment of the Defense Support Program and the Space-based Infrared System (SBIRS-High). DSP and SBIRS-High used scanning mechanisms to carry out full-earth surveillance to monitor missiles and other infrared targets. However, Raytheon's new sensor does not need such scanning systems and is designed to absorb future developments in focal-plane technology, the company cited Hart as saying.