GPS IIR-17M Successfully Launched into Orbit
October 17, 2007
The latest GPS Block IIR satellite, designated GPS IIR-17M, lifted off successfully today from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II launch vehicle.
Following a nominal flight of 1 hour and 8 minutes, the rocket deployed the spacecraft successfully, ULA reported.
Designed and built by Lockheed Martin, the satellite is the fourth in a series of eight planned Block IIR-M spacecraft. The Block IIR-M series includes new features designed to enhance operations and navigation signal performance for both military and civilian GPS users.
Specifically, each IIR-M satellite includes a modernized antenna panel that provides increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti-jamming capabilities for the military, and a second civil signal that will provide users with an open access signal on a different frequency. IIR-17M joins three IIR-M satellites and 12 other operational Block IIR satellites within the current 30-spacecraft constellation, according to Lockheed Martin.
Lockheed Martin Navigation Systems, the prime contractor for the GPS IIR program, and navigation payload provider ITT have designed and built 21 IIR spacecraft together for the U.S. Air Force's GPS Wing, Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California. The final eight spacecraft, designed with the enhancements described above, are designated Block IIR-M. Lockheed Martin is also responsible for launch and flight operations support of the GPS IIR and IIR-M satellites.
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