Geostationary satellites to be built for U.S. Space Force by Rocket Lab
NewsMay 26, 2026
LONG BEACH, California. Rocket Lab won a $90 million contract from the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command to design, build, integrate, and operate two geostationary orbit satellites carrying Heimdall space domain awareness payloads, the company announced in a statement.
The award marks Rocket Lab’s first satellite production program for geostationary orbit and shifts the Heimdall effort from payload prototyping to delivery of operational space vehicles, the statement reads.
Rocket Lab will serve as the prime contractor for the mission, with work including spacecraft design and production, integration of the Heimdall optical payload, launch integration with a government-provided launch vehicle, and up to five years of on-orbit operations after commissioning, the company says.
The satellites will use Rocket Lab’s Lightning bus, modified for geostationary orbit requirements such as thermal control, radiation conditions, propulsion, and station keeping, according to the statement.
The Heimdall payloads are electro-optical sensors intended to operate from geosynchronous orbit and support the Space Force’s ability to track objects in the geostationary orbit belt, the company says.
