The U.S. Space Force has awarded approximately $1.6 billion in satellite construction contracts to Rocket Lab in Long Beach and Northrop Grumman’s Redondo Beach Space Park campus, advancing a growing low Earth orbit network designed to detect emerging missile threats, including hypersonic weapons.
The contracts, issued through the Space Development Agency, call for each company to build 18 satellites for the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, a planned constellation providing missile warning, tracking and military communications with near-continuous global coverage.
Rocket Lab secured an $805 million contract, the largest in the company’s history, marking a major milestone in its evolution beyond launch services. The company previously received a $515 million award to deliver 18 communications satellites for the same network.
“This is more than just a contract. It’s a resounding affirmation of our evolution from simply a trusted launch provider to a leading vertically integrated space prime contractor,” said Rocket Labs founder and chief executive Peter Beck in online remarks.
Founded in New Zealand in 2006, Rocket Lab builds satellites and provides small-satellite launch services using its Electron rocket. The company relocated its headquarters to Long Beach in 2020 and is currently developing a larger launch vehicle. Rocket Lab said it could ultimately earn up to $1 billion by supplying components to other contractors supporting the satellite network.
Northrop Grumman received a $764 million contract under the latest award and is now positioned to deliver a total of 150 satellites for the system. The company has participated in earlier phases of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture and said the satellites are being built to address the growing threat posed by hypersonic missiles, which maneuver in flight and require advanced infrared tracking and rapid data transmission.
Gurpartap “GP” Sandhoo, acting director of the Space Development Agency, said the contracts awarded “will achieve near-continuous global coverage for missile warning and tracking” in addition to other defense capabilities.
Additional contracts announced Friday went to a Lockheed Martin group based in Sunnyvale, Calif., and L3Harris Technologies in Fort Wayne, Ind. Those awards, covering 36 satellites, were valued at nearly $2 billion. Lockheed Martin said the work would be split between its California facilities and Denver.
Investors responded positively to the announcement, with Rocket Lab shares rising nearly 18% on Friday, while Northrop Grumman shares gained 1.6%.
Together, the contracts underscore the expanding role of Southern California’s aerospace sector in national defense and highlight the Space Force’s accelerating push to deploy resilient, space-based systems capable of countering next-generation missile threats.
Originally reported by Laurence Darmiento, Staff Writer in LA times.
