Photo: Lockheed Martin

[Via Satellite 12-06-13] Testing of the second Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellite by Lockheed Martin has been completed, and spacecraft operations have been successfully handed over to the U.S. Navy. The handover also includes acceptance of three MUOS ground stations that will relay voice and high-speed data signals for mobile users worldwide.

MUOS 2 was launched on July 19, 2013 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The system provides secure communications for simultaneous and prioritized voice, video and data for the first time to users on the move.

“We completed our baseline on-orbit testing in half the time compared to MUOS 1,” said Iris Bombelyn, vice president of narrowband communications, Lockheed Martin. “When commissioned, the full digital data and flexible network management capabilities will be available to users for both MUOS 1 and MUOS 2.”

The Naval Satellite Operations Center will soon begin relocation operations to place MUOS 2 in its operational slot. There, it will undergo testing and evaluation prior to formal government commissioning in 2014.

MUOS satellites are equipped with a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) payload that provides a 10-fold increase in transmission throughput over the current ultra high frequency (UHF) satellite system, which is also on board. The WCDMA payload gives users the advantage of high-speed data and priority access that legacy systems did not.