MDA: Propulsion Component System Testing Complete
On Wednesday, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) announced that it completed testing a key propulsion system component for its Multiple Kill Vehicle-L (MKV-L) payload. (Source – PDF)
In a series of static, hot-fire tests at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility in Las Cruces, N.M., the divert thruster stem met performance requirements. From the press release:
“During an engagement with the enemy, this high-performance propulsion system maneuvers the carrier vehicle and its cargo of kill vehicles into the threat complex to intercept the targets. With tracking data from the Ballistic Missile Defense System and its own seeker, the carrier vehicle dispenses and guides the kill vehicles to destroy targets in the complex. This technology will negate more advanced countermeasures that could be aboard hostile ballistic missiles.”
The MKV-L is a force multiplier for land- and sea-based weapons of the integrated midcourse missile defense system. If an enemy launches a missile, an interceptor equipped with MKV-L would destroy the re-entry vehicle and other threat objects. The need to protect against ballistic missiles is paramount, and developing, testing, and deploying a layered Ballistic Missile Defense System is vital. Defense contractor Raytheon is also developing a separate multiple kill vehicle technology.
Tags: Ballistic Missile Defense System, Missile Defense Agency, MKV-L, NASA, Raytheon