On August 11, a SpaceX Falcon 9 launched two communications satellites for the Space Norway Arctic Satellite Broadband Mission (ASBM). The rocket lifted off at 22:02 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Space Norway is a government-owned enterprise that provides satellite communications services and infrastructure for the government, defense and commercial industries.

ASBM satellites built by Northrop Grumman are designed to provide broadband communications services over the Arctic and high-latitude areas. Each ASBM satellite includes the U.S. Army’s Enhanced Polar Recoil System (EPS-R) for secure communications, an X-band payload for the Norwegian Armed Forces, and a satellite for commercial satellite operator Viasat and the Norwegian radiation monitor.

Both satellites would be launched into a highly elliptical Molniya transfer orbit. ASBM is the first highly elliptical orbit mission to carry a commercial broadband payload. It is also SpaceX’s first launch into such orbit.

The Falcon 9 first stage supporting this mission has completed its 22nd flight. After stage separation, the first stage landed on an unmanned craft parked in the Pacific Ocean. The satellites, named ASBM-1 and ASBM-2, are built on Northrop Grumman’s GEOStar-3 bus platform and will operate in highly elliptical polar orbits.

EPS-R will be the first operational U.S. military payload deployed on a commercial satellite operated by an international partner, marking a significant milestone in military-commercial cooperation, according to the U.S. Space Force.

Troy Brasher, Northrop Grumman’s vice president of satellite missions, said the mission “will help meet the high demand for communications in the region that cannot be provided by traditional geostationary satellites.”

Brashear, a retired U.S. Air Force officer with experience in the Arctic, noted that the region is not only notable for its natural resources but also for its strategic shipping routes. “The need for reliable communications capabilities is increasingly critical for both military and commercial users,” he said. Space News.

In 2019, Space Norway selected Northrop Grumman to build two satellites, and the EPS-R payload was developed under a separate contract with the U.S. Space Force.