Mary-Louise Hoffman
Orbital ATK has been awarded a $23.6 million contract to help the U.S. Air Force launch a space surveillance satellite with the company’s Minotaur IV rocket.
The ORS-5 SensorSat spacecraft is scheduled to lift off in mid-2017 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, Orbital ATK said Tuesday.
The company expects to receive a launch license from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration to perform contract work.
Orbital ATK designed its Minotaur IV launch vehicle to employ repurposed Peacekeeper Intercontinental Ballistic Missile boosters and Orion 38 solid rocket motors.
Minotaur rockets have been used to carry out 25 U.S. space missions and put 74 satellites into orbit to date, Orbital ATK said.
