Here's why the Space Force just launched a rocket as the world fights the coronavirus pandemic
The Space Force can't afford to shelter in place.
On Thursday (March 26), a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket launched the sixth and final Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF-6) military communications satellite to Earth orbit, acing the first-ever mission for the U.S. Space Force.
The Atlas V was cleared to fly even though many activities around the nation and the world — including other rocket launches — have been grounded by the coronavirus pandemic. The launch was approved because the $1.4 billion AEHF-6 satellite is essential to national security, U.S. military officials said.
AEHF-6 "is designated mission-essential, and it's because the AEHF constellation supports the president of the United States, other national leaders and the joint forces with critical strategic communications around the planet," Thompson said. "And this particular launch extends that capability out into the timeframe beyond 2030."
But Thompson also stressed that COVID-19 was very much on the minds of the AEHF-6 launch team, which took "every precaution to ensure our workforce is safe."
.@SpaceForceCSO addresses the force on the spread of #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/aM9R6ApgXcMarch 27, 2020
The six-satellite AEHF constellation circles Earth in geostationary orbit, about 22,200 miles (35,700 kilometers) above the planet. From that lofty perch, the spacecraft provide secure, jam-proof communications between government officials and warfighters on the ground.
Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor for the $15 billion AEHF network, which is a follow-on to the U.S. Air Force's Milstar communications constellation. The other five AEHF satellites launched in August 2010, May 2012, September 2013, October 2018 and August 2019. The spacecraft have a design lifetime of 14 years.
The AEHF satellites aren't the only space assets that have been deemed critical to U.S. national security. A variety of satellites meet that description, and the Space Force is committed to keeping all of them up and running despite the coronavirus outbreak, said Gen. John "Jay" Raymond, chief of space operations for the new military branch, which was officially established in December 2019. (The Space Force, by the way, resides within the U.S. Air Force, much as the Marine Corps is part of the Department of the Navy.)