On April 6, Dallas, TX-based Jacobs began a new era of advanced, affordable space radar payloads with its Mango One satellite achieving a successful on-orbit performance. On Jan. 24, 2021, Jacobs’ Mango One satellite was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 Transporter One rideshare mission to a sun synchronous orbit.
Mango One has successfully completed payload checkout and begun performing radio frequency (RF) survey missions using the modular and scalable Jacobs next generation active electronically scanned arrays (AESA) and advanced RF payload control electronics. Additional demonstrations of radar and communications capabilities will continue.
Successful on-orbit performance is another major step in Jacobs’ strategic vision as an aerospace and defense prime space payload hardware and software provider of affordable, commercial space based AESAs. Leveraging capabilities from the acquisition of KeyW, Jacobs brings over 25 years of airborne and terrestrial RF synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and moving target indication (MTI) payload hardware and processing.
“The Mango One on-orbit operations and demonstration of highly capable and affordable space solutions is another example of Jacobs delivering innovative technologies that enable our customer’s mission,” said Jacobs Critical Mission Solutions Senior Vice President Steve Arnette. “These solutions are a key component of the successful integration of Jacobs and KeyW, bringing even more unique and differentiated mission-focused capabilities in the rapidly evolving space sector.”
By leveraging the multi-billion-dollar commercial investment in 5G technology and tailoring it to meet the critical mission needs of both government and commercial customers, Jacobs is reducing the cost of space radar by 50% compared to that of legacy space radar systems. To meet market demand, the use of state-of-the-art advanced commercial manufacturing processes allows Jacobs to rapidly scale capacity and insert leading-edge technology.
Source: Jacobs
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