In a rapid response mission for the U.S. military, a Northrop Grumman rocket has successfully launched a covert Space Force satellite on June 13th to promote space domain awareness or for sensing manmade objects in orbit.
At 4:11 a.m. EDT, sources confirmed that a Northrop Grumman L-1011 carrier airplane was launched from the recently renamed Vandenberg Space Force Base and sailed over the Pacific Ocean, releasing a solid-fuel Pegasus XL rocket hauling the new satellite, sources cited.
The purpose of the mission was to show how the military can develop and deploy satellites in less time. According to a Space Force spokeswoman, the small spacecraft sealed inside the nose cone of a Pegasus XL rocket is named Odyssey.
The mission is deemed as Tactically Responsive Launch-2 (TacRL-2) and is recognized by the Air Force since 2019. The Air Force, in its biennial report, mentioned awarding Pegasus XL rocket systems to Northrop Grumman, which had built a strategically responsive launch ability for this rocket system.
Vandenberg officials stated that the mission Tactically Responsive Launch-2, successfully launched by Team V showed its agility, speed, and flexibility. This launch demonstrates Team V's talent, dedication, and flexibility by showing that deployment of space resources in orbit quicker than typical timetables.
Notably, Northrop Grumman had acquired this contract as part of Orbital Services Program-4, under a USD 1 billion nine-year procurement program that began back in 2019.
This allowed for task orders based on specific needs. According to federal contracting data, Northrop Grumman received the TacRL-2 task order from the Space Force's Space and Missile Systems Center in July 2020.
The Space Force issued a fresh procurement request in February for upcoming Tactically Responsive Launch offers, with TacRL-3 scheduled for April 2022 and TacRL-4 scheduled for February 2023.
Source Credit-
https://www.space.com/space-force-tacrl-2-satellite-launches-on-northrop-grumman-pegasus-rocket