Miniature Sensor Technology Integration (MSTI) Flight Test Results

The MSTI-2 satellite mission is the second in a series established to test, in realistic scenarios, miniature spacecraft and sensor technologies for missile detection and tracking on low cost, low-earth orbit technology demonstration satellites. Cooperative demonstrations are planned to combine MSTI-provided target track file information, with interceptor technology tests, to fully demonstrate technologies associated with theater missile defense (TMO) targeting. The program is sponsored by the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) and executed by a government/industry team led by the Air Force Phillips Laboratory's Space Experiments Directorate (operating location Edwards Air Force Base). The MSTI-2 mission will demonstrate several advanced technologies and conduct some of the necessary research to enable a future robust space-based theater missile surveillance, detection, and tracking capability. The MSTI program is structured to provide the space operations community with an operations test bed to explore operations concepts and doctrinal issues associated with theater space-based surveillance. In this manner, it will be used by Department of Defense space operators as a research and development platform to explore new and innovative satellite control concepts. MSTI-2 is presently evaluating target track file processing by tracking dedicated and cooperative targets. Dedicated targets include ARIES boosters launched under the BMDO-sponsored Navy LEAP program and Sergeant Missiles. MSTI-2 has also monitored ground firings of rocket motors and other targets of opportunity. MSTI-2 will gather clutter data and conduct environmental experiments. Some early observations include the monitoring of volcanic thermal activity and controlled forest fires. This paper briefly discusses the MSTI mission objectives, the new technologies introduced with this mission and then reviews the launch history, design capabilities and operations system. Orbital performance and planned observations are described for flight 2. The paper concludes with a discussion of flight 3 development and capabilities.