The U.S. Air Force plans to launch the ORS-1 intelligence and surveillance satellite June 28 atop a Minotaur 1 rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, an Air Force official said June 24.
Developed in 30 months at the behest of U.S. Strategic Command, ORS-1 is the first satellite developed by the Pentagon’s Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) Office intended for operational use. From an altitude of 400 kilometers, the spacecraft will collect visible and infrared imagery for U.S. Central Command, Air Force Col. Carol Welsch, commander of the Space Development and Test Directorate, said during a media briefing.
