Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has confirmed that British-built military satellite Titania is now in orbit, giving the Armed Forces a new pair of eyes in space after last month's launch of Tyche.
Titania is the second satellite in the UK's growing military constellation and will be operated by UK Space Command as part of the ISTARI programme. Like Tyche, it weighs around 100kg - about the size of a washing machine - and orbits the Earth every ninety minutes at around 27,000 kilometres per hour, improving the ability to observe military activity on Earth from space.
The Ministry of Defence is also standing up Project Inaros, a trial of an advanced network of ground sensors at three sites around the world designed to track movements and detect threats in space. Titania was designed and built in Hampshire by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and BAE Systems under a £9.5 million contract, with Juno and Oberon to follow.
Wes Streeting: 'The new space age is here'
"The new space age is here. Space underpins everything from weather forecasts and financial transactions to sat-navs and mobile phone connections, and it is critical for our national security and military operations," Wes Streeting said.
"Having Titania now in orbit and Project Inaros stepping up how we watch over our satellites means we can see threats sooner, making the UK safer. Titania and Inaros are British-built and British-designed, backed by more than £3 billion of investment in space capabilities. That means highly skilled jobs across the UK, a stronger industrial base, and a more secure United Kingdom."
ISTARI and the next satellites
Under ISTARI, the Ministry of Defence is delivering satellites and supporting ground systems to expand space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. Air Chief Marshal Sir Harv Smyth, Chief of the Air Staff, said Tyche and Titania - with Juno and Oberon ahead - will demonstrate the ability to observe the Earth from space that is critical to national resilience and military advantage.
