Missile-warning satellites get VR boost for accelerated development
NewsMarch 15, 2023
REDONDO BEACH, Calif. Northrop Grumman reports that it is leveraging digital virtual-reality (VR) technology to refine the design and development of the Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR) Polar (NGP) satellites, which it is building for the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC).
Northrop Grumman’s VR approach, which it calls the Highly Immersive Virtual Environment (HIVE), enables its engineers to design, build, maintain, and service satellites in VR scenarios before any hardware is manufactured or procured, thereby reducing technical costs and risks early in the development phases.
As part of the Next-Gen OPIR, a pair of NGP satellites will encompass the northern hemisphere with sensor coverage to provide data that will help deter and defend against ballistic and hypersonic missiles.
In the first phase of the $1.89 billion SSC contract, Northrop Grumman and Ball Aerospace partnered in March 2022 to design and develop the two NGP satellite infrared payloads.
