SpaceX will launch space development agency satellites from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The agency estimates they will be ready to launch by the end of 2022.
WASHINGTON – SpaceX has been awarded a 150 150.4 million contract to launch 28 satellites for the Pentagon’s space agency, the Department of Defense announced Dec. 31.
The contract is to launch a mix of small and medium spacecraft of different sizes that the space development agency procures from several vendors. It consists of 20 data-relay satellites known as the transportation layer and eight other missile-warning satellites known as the tracking layer.
SpaceX will launch these satellites from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
The Space Development Agency requested a bid on October 6 and was due to receive a response on November 9. The agency estimates that the satellites will be ready for launch by the end of 2022.
According to the request for the proposal, the manifesto will be divided into two planes of 14 spacecraft each in a circular near-polar orbit at an itude altitude of 950 km.
The agency said it would select a provider that offers “best value” based on certain criteria, such as price, schedule and past performance.
Separately, SpaceX won the Space Development Agency’s contract to produce four tracking layer satellites in October, but work has not yet been resolved due to protests by rival bidders.
