An ultra-high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite with ISR capabilities. (Airbus)
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a GBP127 million (USD157.3 million) agreement with Airbus Defence and Space for the design and build of the Oberon satellite system, expected to launch in 2027, according to a 10 February MoD press release.
The new satellite system is made up of two ultra-high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites with space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.
Oberon will have the usual SAR advantage of being able to provide Earth surface imagery despite cloud cover, night, or weather conditions, an Airbus representative told Janes on 11 February.
“With more satellites, defence has wider and more persistent coverage,” a defence source told Janes on 11 February.
The satellite will include the Wrapped Rib Antenna, which is developed and supplied by Oxford Systems. The antenna is suitable for X-band SAR applications and telecommunications applications at other frequencies, according to the company. The antenna includes carbon fibre and knitted gold-plated metal mesh components. The carbon fibre structures form into shape once the satellite is in orbit. The so-called “wrapped rib” design will transmit and receive signals that are used to map the Earth's surface, according to Airbus. The system, as well as the ground segment and geospatial intelligence capabilities, will be developed in the United Kingdom.
The Oberon system will have “advanced imagery sensors”, according to the MoD, with differing capabilities to its existing Tyche satellite. In August 2024 UK Space Command launched Tyche, its first ISR satellite under its ISTARI programme, to provide space-based imagery while operating in low Earth orbit (LEO) over a five-year lifespan.
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