Boeing and the U.S. Air Force Milsatcom Systems Wing have exercised an $8.4 million contract option to activate Phase 2 of the Enhanced Polar System (EPS) payload study, Boeing announced Jan. 9.

Phase 1 began in July with a $1.5 million award for Boeing to define the next-generation communications payload for a polar-orbiting satellite. Phase 2 focuses on further payload system definition efforts and future EPS system definition and production efforts; work is expected for completion by December.

The EPS is planned to provide protected satellite communications for warfighters in northern polar regions as well as fill expected communications gaps in areas not covered by the military’s Advanced Extremely High Frequency and Transformational Satellite Communications systems now under development.

In a separate development, Boeing announced its team building the Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) system passed the system critical design review and is on schedule for a December 2008 launch.
The SBSS Pathfinder will augment the existing space surveillance network and provide increased capacity and timeliness to detect and track orbiting space objects.