{"id":509186,"date":"2024-11-20T15:56:24","date_gmt":"2024-11-20T20:56:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spacenews.com\/?p=509186"},"modified":"2024-11-20T15:56:27","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T20:56:27","slug":"lockheed-martins-new-mid-size-satellite-platform-closer-to-launch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacenews.com\/lockheed-martins-new-mid-size-satellite-platform-closer-to-launch\/","title":{"rendered":"Lockheed Martin\u2019s new mid-size satellite platform closer to launch"},"content":{"rendered":"

ARLINGTON, Va. \u2014 Defense giant Lockheed Martin announced Nov. 19 that its new mid-size satellite platform will make its orbital debut next year aboard a Firefly Aerospace rocket.<\/p>

The LM 400 satellite bus \u2014 roughly the size of a household refrigerator \u2014 represents Lockheed’s bid to capture a sweet spot in the satellite market: missions requiring more power and payload capacity than small satellites can provide, but not demanding the complexity of traditional large satellites.<\/p>

“The intent is to show that we’ve built a system, and the technical risk has been burned down,” Jeff Schrader, vice president of strategy and business development at Lockheed Martin Space, said at a news conference.<\/p>

Supply chain problems<\/h2>

The planned demonstration mission in low Earth orbit, carrying a communications payload, comes after a three-year development period marked by supply chain disruptions that delayed the platform’s<\/a> original 2023 launch target. The program also faced a setback when its initial launch provider, ABL Space, struggled to get its launch vehicle operational, prompting Lockheed to pivot to Firefly’s Alpha rocket under a new multi-launch agreement<\/a>.<\/p>

The LM 400 platform was selected by Raytheon for a U.S. Space Force missile-defense program but the company exited the program. Schrader indicated that multiple customers have signed on. He said the bus will be offered in the commercial and government markets.<\/p>

“We went through a critical design review on a government program already, and this has already been bid on several customer programs,” he said. The satellites will be manufactured at Lockheed’s facilities in Denver, Colorado.\u00a0<\/p>

This announcement comes on the heels of Lockheed Martin’s recent acquisition of small-satellite manufacturer Terran Orbital. Schrader emphasized that Terran Orbital will maintain its independence as a merchant supplier rather than becoming exclusively Lockheed’s in-house manufacturer.<\/p>

“We’re also working with them to see what else they can do and what we can do to help them,” Schrader added, suggesting potential synergies between the companies’ capabilities.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The LM 400 is now scheduled to launch in mid 2025 on a Firefly Alpha rocket for a demonstration mission <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10999,"featured_media":509187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"mc4wp_mailchimp_campaign":[],"newspack_featured_image_position":"small","newspack_post_subtitle":"The LM 400 is now scheduled to launch in mid 2025 on a Firefly Alpha rocket for a demonstration mission ","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4148,4149,4161],"tags":[2479,792],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[2242],"class_list":["post-509186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commercial-archive","category-militaryspace-archive","category-news-archive","tag-firefly-aerospace","tag-lockheed-martin","entry"],"yoast_head":"\nLockheed Martin\u2019s new mid-size satellite platform closer to launch - 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