Northrop Grumman has also provided its Scalable SIRU™ for previous SBIRS GEO satellites, including GEO-5 following the 2014 contract award.

"Northrop Grumman has been steadfast in providing Lockheed Martin with crucial components on SBIRS," said David Sheridan, Lockheed Martin vice president and SBIRS program director. "Our team is assuring that SBIRS production will continue to yield vital capabilities for the Air Force's early warning missions."

Artistic rendition of SBIRS satellite.

Image is courtesy of Lockheed Martin.

Northrop Grumman's Scalable SIRU™ is the industry standard for high-precision, long-life attitude control solutions supporting commercial, government and civil space missions. The Scalable SIRU™ has proven its performance during numerous space missions, including NASA's MESSENGER mission to orbit Mercury and the Global Precipitation Measurement mission. At the heart of the Scalable SIRU™ is Northrop Grumman's patented hemispherical resonator gyro, which has been used in space without a mission failure for more than 30 million operating hours.