Harris Corporation (NYSE:HRS) has received an $84 million contract to produce Navigation Technology Satellite-3 (NTS-3), an experimental satellite that will demonstrate new position, navigation and timing capabilities to improve the resiliency of the Global Positioning System (GPS).

The Space Enterprise Consortium selected Harris as the prime system integrator to design, develop, integrate and test NTS-3, including ground mission applications. The contract was signed in December of 2018. Scheduled to launch in 2022, the position, navigation and timing (PNT) satellite will simultaneously broadcast military and earth coverage signals at increased power levels – enabling it to operate in contested environments.

Artistic rendition of the NTS-3 satellite. Image is courtesy of Harris.

The time keeping system will use diverse timing sources to improve mission stability, anomaly detection and correction. The system’s design will enable Harris to rapidly develop and deploy new waveforms to reprogram and update the satellite throughout its lifecycle.

The company will leverage its 40 plus years of Harris GPS and space antenna expertise to support all phases of the project. Harris’ expertise in creating and sending GPS signals extends back to the mid-1970s — with the company providing navigation technology for every U.S. GPS satellite ever launched. Originally developed for warfighters, millions of people around the world and billions of dollars of commerce now depend on the accurate, reliable GPS signal created and sent by Harris navigation technology.

Chris Forseth, VP and GM, Harris Space Superiority business, said the Harris solution extends beyond the traditional bounds of space-based reprogrammable payloads to enable new techniques to combat evolving threats.