GPS World

Tag: GPS III SV09

  • Update: Ninth GPS III successfully launched

    Update: Ninth GPS III successfully launched

    Update: The ninth GPS III satellite was successfully launched into orbit Tuesday.

    Pre-launch report

    GPS III Space Vehicle SV09 is being prepped for launch from Space Launch Complex (SLC)-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

    The launch, delayed from Jan. 25, is now scheduled for 11:38 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Jan. 27.

    A live webcast of this mission from launch to satellite deployment will begin about ten minutes prior to liftoff and can be watched on www.spacex.com/launches. The webcast will be shown on the X TV app, as well as various streaming outlets, including YouTube.com via SpaceFlight Now and NASASpaceflight.com.

    U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) and Combat Forces Command (CFC) will launch SV09 as the next National Security Space Launch (NSSL). The two field commands are executing this mission using the model established by the Rapid Response Trailblazer launch in December 2024 and GPS III-7 (SV08) launch in May 2025. Being pre-postured with the right equipment has enabled the launch teams to process and integrate the GPS III (SV09) satellite with the Falcon 9 rocket on a shortened timeline, the Space Force said.

    GPS III satellites, equipped with M-code technology, provide the warfighter with a significantly more accurate and jam-resistant capability. Adding another such satellite to the constellation enhances the system’s robustness and ultimately boosts the warfighting lethality of the Joint Force.

    “For this launch, we traded a GPS III mission from a Vulcan to a Falcon 9, then exchanged a later GPS IIIF mission from a Falcon Heavy to a Vulcan,” said USSF Col. Ryan Hiserote, SYD 80 Commander and NSSL program manager. “Our commitment to keeping things flexible – programmatically and contractually –means that we can pivot when necessary to changing circumstances. We have a proven ability to adapt the launch manifest to complex and dynamic factors and are continuing to shorten our timelines for delivering critical capabilities to warfighters.”

    The space vehicle was successfully delivered to Florida over-the-road on July 31, 2025. Now, CFC’s Mission Delta 31 is leading the pre-launch processing of the space vehicle, working alongside Lockheed Martin to integrate it onto the rocket and for launch in a faster timeline than in the past.

    “This mission represents an outstanding collaboration across multiple teams and agencies,” said U.S. Space Force Col. Stephen Hobbs, MD 31 commander. “It foot stomps our ability to rapidly deploy a high-value space asset, in this case, an additional M-Code-capable satellite that brings significant, immediate value to the Joint Force.”

    SV09 is named in honor of Col. Ellison Onizuka, a U.S. Air Force test pilot and NASA astronaut. Onizuka successfully flew on STS-51C, a space shuttle Discovery mission in January 1985. The naming of the satellite also honors his memory as one of the astronauts who perished during the launch of STS-51L aboard the space shuttle Challenger on Jan. 28, 1986.

    With the launch of SV09, the GPS III constellation gains another satellite equipped with significantly enhanced accuracy and jam-resistance, bolstering the capabilities of the Joint Force.

  • Final GPS III satellite available for launch

    Space Systems Command (SSC) has declared GPS III Space Vehicle 10 (SV10) available for launch, marking completion of constellation modernization efforts and production for the GPS III program.

    “The completion of the tenth, and final, GPS III space vehicle is a significant milestone for GPS modernization,” said Scott Thomas, GPS III program manager for the GPS Space Vehicles Acquisition Delta within SSC’s Military Communications and PNT directorate. “This would not have been possible without the collaboration, communication, and accountability of our industry and government partners. The GPS III program contributions underpin U.S. national security needs for our warfighters and for more than four billion GPS users worldwide.”

    GPS III satellites deliver enhanced performance and accuracy through a variety of improvements, including increased signal protection with improved accuracy. GPS III also delivers a new L1C signal designed for interoperability with similar GNSS, and expands the civilian L5 signal, dubbed safety-of-life, which is not yet operational.

    GPS III SV06 was launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 vehicle on Jan. 18, and Operational Acceptance was declared on Jan. 31. GPS III SV07, SV08, SV09 and SV10 are awaiting launch at Lockheed Martin’s GPS III processing facility in Waterton, Colorado.

  • GPS III production update: On the road to a refreshed constellation

    GPS III production update: On the road to a refreshed constellation

    Thermal Vacuum testing verifies that a satellite can operate in space’s extreme environment. (Photo: Lockheed Martin)
    Thermal Vacuum testing verifies that a satellite can operate in space’s extreme environment. (Photo: Lockheed Martin)

    With GPS III SV01 and SV02 now on orbit, GPS III satellites continue to roll off the production line at Lockheed Martin’s GPS III Processing Facility near Denver.

    Johnathon Caldwell, Lockheed Martin Space’s vice president for navigation systems, provided GPS World with an update to the entire GPS III family.

    SV01. The first GPS III satellite is in a holding state pending readiness by 2SOPS [the Second Space Operations Squadron] to take the vehicle onto the system for operational checkout, a transfer expected to take place later this year, Caldwell explained. The satellite completed on-orbit testing in July.

    “We’re in the process of getting the 2SOPS crews trained up to operate a GPS III vehicle,” Caldwell said. “By the end of this year, they will be able to take [SV01] into the constellation and start flying it as a live, set-healthy vehicle.”

    SV02. Launched Aug. 22, SV02 is following in the footsteps of its older sibling, with a quiet checkout and no major findings. Like SV01, once it completes testing, it will stay in temporary holding until 2SOPS is ready to bring it into the constellation.

    SV03. On May 27, the Air Force declared SV03 available for launch. It is now in final preparations for shipment, with an expected launch date in January 2020 aboard a Falcon 9 rocket.

    SV04. The Air force declared SV04 available for launch; it is now in storage awaiting a launch date.

    SV05. The fifth satellite is wrapping up environmental tests. Lockheed Martin anticipates that it will be available for launch early next year.

    SV06. The satellite has been moved into the thermal vacuum testing chamber and begun a rigorous testing campaign before it meets the harsh environment of space.

    SV07, SV08 and SV09 are on the assembly line.

    GPS IIIF Satellites. In 2018, the Air Force selected Lockheed Martin to build up to 22 GPS IIIFs, adding new features and resiliency to the original GPS III satellite design. The company has been on the path to meet the critical design review for the GPS IIIF spacecraft, which is due to take place next spring.