News: National Reconnaissance Office
Headlines from space publications, linked back to the original articles
Industry / News / National Reconnaissance Office
- Launch Preview: Crew-13 to launch to ISS, Falcon Heavy to launch mission for the NRO NASASpaceflight · 29 Sep 2026 Four orbital launches are expected this week, all by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy…
- NRO to expand use of HawkEye 360’s satellite intelligence SpaceNews · 18 Aug 2026 NRO contract increases U.S. government access to satellite data used to locate radars, ships and other electronic emitters
- Senate installs new chiefs for U.S. military space acquisition, spy satellites SpaceNews · 7 Aug 2026 Erich Hernandez-Baquero will take over military space acquisition; Roger Mason will lead the National Reconnaissance Office
- Capella, Iceye and Umbra win NRO radar-data contracts SpaceNews · 5 Aug 2026 SAN FRANCISCO – The National Reconnaissance Office has awarded contracts to Capella Space, Iceye U.S. and Umbra to expand the U.S. government’s use of commercial synthetic aperture radar (SAR). The […]
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch classified payload for National Reconnaissance Office Spaceflight Now · 29 Jul 2026 The NROL-95 mission will be the third payload for the National Reconnaissance Office launched under the National Security Space Launch Phase 2 procurement. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is sch...
- Space acquisition and NRO picks face SASC SpaceNews · 14 Jul 2026 Erich Hernandez-Baquero, nominated to become the Air Force’s top civilian space acquisition official, and Roger Mason, the administration’s choice to lead the National Reconnaissance Office, appeared before the Senate Ar...
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch intelligence-gathering satellites for the National Reconnaissance Office Spaceflight Now · 18 Jun 2026 The Falcon 9 rocket will launch an undisclosed number of satellites, which are believed to be Starshield satellites, a government variant of Starlink. Liftoff from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base is scheduled durin...
- BlackSky to accelerate broad-area collection work under NRO contract modification SpaceNews · 9 Jun 2026 SAN FRANCISCO – The National Reconnaissance Office awarded a contract modification to BlackSky Technology to accelerate development of AROS broad-area-collection satellites. “The effort funds a direct path toward a fligh...
- NRO nominee says commercial space, AI are reshaping spy satellite agency SpaceNews · 2 Jun 2026 In a confirmation hearing, Roger Mason said clear government demand signals are needed as private investment transforms the space intelligence market
- Blue Origin gets national security launch task order hours before New Glenn explosion SpaceNews · 30 May 2026 U.S. Space Force, National Reconnaissance Office ‘remain committed partners with Blue Origin’
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch intelligence-gathering satellites for the National Reconnaissance Office Spaceflight Now · 11 May 2026 The NROL-72 mission will be the 13th to date supporting what the NRO calls its “proliferated architecture” satellite constellation. Liftoff of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base is schedu...
- NRO highlights government and industry partnerships SpaceNews · 14 Apr 2026 COLORADO SPRINGS – The National Reconnaissance Office, the agency responsible for U.S. spy satellites, seeks partners to accelerate its adoption of state-of-the-art intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilit...
- NRO expands commercial multi-phenomenology surveillance awards SpaceDaily · 19 Feb 2026 Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 17, 2026 The National Reconnaissance Office has issued the first three awards under its Strategic Commercial Enhancements Commercial Solutions Opening, advancing the agency's shift toward multi-p...
- National Reconnaissance Office adds HEO, SatVu and Sierra Nevada to commercial imaging program SpaceNews · 10 Feb 2026 “The NRO is always looking for innovative ways to bring on new partners,” said Chris Scolese, director of the NRO
- Live coverage: NRO, SpaceX to launch reconnaissance satellites from Vandenberg Spaceflight Now · 16 Jan 2026 The NROL-105 mission is the first of about a dozen missions planned for 2026 that support the NRO’s so-called proliferated architecture satellite constellation. Liftoff from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base is sched...
- NRO taps Capitol Hill staffer Bill Adkins as principal deputy director SpaceNews · 12 Jan 2026 Former House Defense Appropriations aide takes on day-to-day leadership role at U.S. spy satellite agency
- Space Force awards $739 million in launch orders to SpaceX SpaceNews · 10 Jan 2026 SpaceX sweeps nine national security missions for SDA and NRO under NSSL Phase 3 Lane 1
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office Spaceflight Now · 9 Dec 2025 The mission, dubbed NROL-77, is likely to be the final time SpaceX uses Landing Zone 2 to recover a first stage Falcon booster. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is scheduled for 2:16 p.m. EST (19...
- Trump nominee: Closer Space Force-NRO integration ‘worth considering’ SpaceNews · 29 Oct 2025 Berkowitz says one of his priorities as assistant secretary of defense for space policy would be to ‘sustain America’s position as the world’s leader in space activities’
- Falcon 9 launch pushes NRO satellite fleet past 200 in orbit SpaceNews · 22 Sep 2025 The launch of NROL-48 marked the eleventh launch in the NRO’s growing proliferated architecture
- Live coverage: NRO, SpaceX to launch reconnaissance satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg SFB Spaceflight Now · 22 Sep 2025 The NROL-48 mission will be the fifth mission this year supporting the National Reconnaissance Office’s expansive low Earth orbit statellite constellation it calls the proliferated architecture. Liftoff from pad 4E is sc...
- Launch Roundup: Starlink, NRO, and New Shepard missions scheduled NASASpaceflight · 15 Sep 2025 Another busy week of launches has arrived, with SpaceX dominating the launch manifest with four…
- Satellite imagery firms escalate warnings over budget cuts SpaceNews · 25 Jun 2025 At issue is the Trump administration’s proposal to cut roughly $130 million from the NRO’s commercial imagery procurement budget for fiscal 2026
- Lawmakers raise alarm over rumored cuts to commercial satellite imagery funding SpaceNews · 14 May 2025 Rep. Seth Moulton: 'I am especially concerned about the rumor that the National Reconnaissance Office, at the direction of OMB, has slashed commercial imagery funding lines in the FY26 budget'
- Senate confirms Troy Meink as Air Force secretary with bipartisan support SpaceNews · 13 May 2025 Meink most recently served as deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office
- Firefly Aerospace to launch Lockheed Martin LM400 tech demo satellite on Alpha rocket from Vandenberg Spaceflight Now · 26 Apr 2025 The mission comes after a delay of more than a month due to poor weather, followed by the NRO taking priority on the Western Range. Liftoff is targeting the opening of a roughly one-hour window that begins at 6:37 a.m. P...
- NRO reaches milestone with over 200 satellites deployed in two years SpaceNews · 20 Apr 2025 The NROL-145 mission lifted off Sunday on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 8:29 a.m. Eastern.
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch third NRO mission in eight days Spaceflight Now · 19 Apr 2025 The quick pace of missions is notably quick for the intelligence gathering agency. Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base is scheduled for 5:29 a.m. PDT (8:29 a.m. EDT, 1229 UTC).
- Minotaur IV rocket launches spy payloads for National Reconnaissance Office SpaceNews · 16 Apr 2025 The mission, designated NROL-174, lifted off at 3:33 p.m. Eastern from Space Launch Complex 8 (SLC-8) at Vandenberg.
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch Starshield satellites for the NRO on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Spaceflight Now · 12 Apr 2025 The NROL-192 mission will the 10th to date supporting the National Reconnaissance Office’s (NRO) proliferated architecture satellite constellation. Liftoff from pad 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base is targeting Satu...
- Air Force nominee Troy Meink warns U.S. risks losing edge in space SpaceNews · 27 Mar 2025 If confirmed, Meink — currently deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) — would oversee both the Air Force and the Space Force
- NRO expands spy satellite network with back-to-back SpaceX launches SpaceNews · 24 Mar 2025 The NROL-69 mission launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch national security satellite for NRO on Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Spaceflight Now · 24 Mar 2025 The mission will be the fifth of 2025 featuring spacecraft developed by the National Reconnaissance Office. Liftoff of the NROL-69 mission from pad 40 is set for 1:48 p.m. EDT (1748 UTC).
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch reconnaissance satellites for the NRO on Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Spaceflight Now · 20 Mar 2025 The NROL-57 mission will be the eighth launch supporting the National Reconnaissance Office’s proliferated architecture satellite constellation. Liftoff is set for 11:49 p.m. PDT (2:49 a.m. EDT, 0649 UTC).
- Intelligence and dual-use commercial satellites launch on Transporter-13 SpaceNews · 15 Mar 2025 Among the 74 payloads on SpaceX’s Transporter-13 mission was a technology demonstrator from the National Reconnaissance Office
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch 22 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from California Spaceflight Now · 22 Feb 2025 The Starlink 15-1 mission mission will launch to a 70 degree inclination, which was previously used for Starlink missions in Group 2 and Starshield missions for the NRO. Liftoff from pad 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base...
- NRO’s Meink Is Trump’s Choice for Secretary of the Air Force SpacePolicyOnline.com · 17 Jan 2025 Troy Meink, an experienced national security space professional, is President-elect Trump’s choice to be the next Secretary of the Air Force. Currently Principal Deputy Director of the National Reconnaissance Office,
- Trump taps space and intelligence veteran Troy Meink as Air Force secretary SpaceNews · 16 Jan 2025 Meink currently serves as principal deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office
- SpaceX launches NROL-153, expanding U.S. spy satellite constellation SpaceNews · 10 Jan 2025 The launch marks the seventh deployment in the NRO's new "proliferated architecture" strategy, which emphasizes smaller, distributed satellite networks
- Live coverage: SpaceX to launch Starshield satellites for the NRO on Falcon 9 rocket from California Spaceflight Now · 9 Jan 2025 The launch is the first of about half a dozen missions planned to expand the National Reconnaissance Office’s proliferated architecture satellite constellation. Liftoff from pad 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base is s...