Orbital ATK Inc. was an American

aerospace manufacturer An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of Aircraft design process, designing, building, testing, selling, and maintaining aircraft, aircraft parts, missiles, rockets, or spacecraft. Aerospace is a hi ...

and defense industry company. It was formed in February 9, 2015 from the merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and parts of

Alliant Techsystems Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK) was an American Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and arms industry, arms manufacturer headquartered in Arlington County, Virginia. The company operated across 22 states, Puerto Rico, and internationally. ATK reven ...

(ATK). Orbital ATK designed, built, and delivered

rocket engine A rocket engine is a reaction engine, producing thrust in accordance with Newton's third law by ejecting reaction mass rearward, usually a high-speed Jet (fluid), jet of high-temperature gas produced by the combustion of rocket propellants stor ...

military vehicle A military vehicle is any vehicle for land-based military transport and activity, including combat vehicles, both specifically designed for or significantly used by military. Most military vehicles require Off-road vehicle, off-road capabilities ...

firearm A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions). The first firearms originate ...

autocannon An autocannon, automatic cannon or machine cannon is a automatic firearm, fully automatic gun that is capable of rapid-firing large-caliber ( or more) armour-piercing, explosive or incendiary ammunition, incendiary shell (projectile), shells, ...

missile A missile is an airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight aided usually by a propellant, jet engine or rocket motor. Historically, 'missile' referred to any projectile that is thrown, shot or propelled towards a target; this ...

ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...

precision-guided munition A precision-guided munition (PGM), also called a smart weapon, smart munition, or smart bomb, is a type of weapon system that integrates advanced guidance and control systems, such as Global Positioning System, GPS, laser guidance, or Infrared ...

satellite A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scient ...

s, missile approach warning systems,

launch vehicle A launch vehicle is typically a rocket-powered vehicle designed to carry a payload (a crewed spacecraft or satellites) from Earth's surface or lower atmosphere to outer space. The most common form is the ballistic missile-shaped multistage ...

s and

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...

. The company was acquired by

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and Arms industry, defense company. With 97,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $40 billion, it is one of the world's largest Arms industry ...

on June 6, 2018. The former Orbital ATK operations were renamed Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems and operated as a division until January 1, 2020 when a reorganization merged the operations into the company's other divisions.

History

A merger of Orbital Sciences Corporation and the defense and aerospace divisions of

(ATK) was announced on April 29, 2014. The two companies had collaborated on several previous projects, including the use of 400 ATK rocket motors in Orbital's launch vehicles. The deal officially closed on February 9, 2015. ATK's sporting-goods division spun off to form Vista Outdoor on the same day. On September 18, 2017,

announced plans to purchase Orbital ATK for US$7.8 billion in cash plus assumption of US$1.4 billion in debt. Orbital ATK shareholders approved the buyout on November 29, 2017. The

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...

(FTC) approved the acquisition with conditions on June 5, 2018, and on June 6, 2018, Orbital ATK was renamed Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems. With Northrop Grumman's reorganization of its divisions effective January 1, 2020, Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems was split, with most of the sector merging with other Northrop Grumman businesses into a new Space Systems sector.

Organization

Flight Systems Group

Based in

Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the List of municipalities in Arizona, fourth-most populous city in Arizona ...

, the Flight Systems Group includes the Pegasus,

Minotaur In Greek mythology, the Minotaur (, ''Mīnṓtauros''), also known as Asterion, is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "par ...

, and

Antares Antares is the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius. It has the Bayer designation α Scorpii, which is Latinisation of names, Latinised to Alpha Scorpii. Often referred to as "the heart of the scorpion", Antares is flanked by ...

launch vehicles as well as solid-propulsion and aerostructures programs. The company also operates a

Lockheed L-1011 TriStar The Lockheed L-1011 TriStar (pronounced "El-ten-eleven") is an American medium-to-long-range, wide-body trijet airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation. It was the third wide-body airliner to enter commercial operations, after the Boeing 747 ...

wide body jetliner, which is named Stargazer and is used to air launch Pegasus rockets carrying payloads into space. The Stargazer aircraft is also used for testing under specific programs. The Flight Systems Group became part of Northrop Grumman Space Systems on January 1, 2020.

Defense Systems Group

The Defense Systems Group, based in the

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

area, produces tactical missiles, defense electronics, and medium- and large-caliber ammunition. The division also produces fuzing and warheads for both tactical missiles and munitions; precision metal and composite structures for medium and large-caliber ammunition, military aircraft, ground vehicles, and missile systems; load, assembly, and pack (LAP) of medium caliber munitions; and propellants and powders for the canister and commercial markets. The Defense Systems Group became part of Northrop Grumman Defense Systems on January 1, 2020.

Space Systems Group

Orbital ATK's Space Systems Group provides satellites for

commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...

, scientific, and security purposes. This group also produces the Cygnus spacecraft, which delivers cargo to the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...

. The group was based at the company's headquarters on Warp Drive in Dulles, Virginia.

Products

Rockets

, two- or three-stage medium-lift expendable launch vehicle * Minotaur I, four-stage small-lift expendable launch vehicle * Minotaur IV, four-stage small-lift expendable launch vehicle * Minotaur V, five-stage launch vehicle used for geosynchronous transfer orbits and trans-lunar orbits * Minotaur VI, five-stage medium-lift expendable launch vehicle *

Minotaur-C Minotaur-C (''Minotaur Commercial''), formerly known as Taurus or Taurus XL, is a four Multistage rocket, stage solid rocket , solid fueled launch vehicle built in the United States by Orbital Sciences Corporation, Orbital Sciences (now Northro ...

, four-stage small-lift expendable launch vehicle * Pegasus, air-launched four-stage small-lift launch vehicle *

OmegA Omega (, ; uppercase Ω, lowercase ω; Ancient Greek ὦ, later ὦ μέγα, Modern Greek ωμέγα) is the twenty-fourth and last letter in the Greek alphabet. In the Greek numerals, Greek numeric system/isopsephy (gematria), it has a value ...

, A cancelled medium to heavy lift launch vehicle.

Rocket engines

* GEM-40, solid rocket booster used on the

Delta II Delta II was an expendable launch system, originally designed and built by McDonnell Douglas, and sometimes known as the Thorad Delta 1. Delta II was part of the Delta rocket family, derived directly from the Delta 3000, and entered service in ...

rocket * GEM-60, solid rocket booster used on the Delta IV rocket * GEM-63, solid rocket booster used on the

Atlas V Atlas V is an expendable launch system and the fifth major version in the Atlas (rocket family), Atlas launch vehicle family. It was developed by Lockheed Martin and has been operated by United Launch Alliance (ULA) since 2006. Primarily used to ...

rocket * GEM-63XL, solid rocket booster planned to be used on the Vulcan rocket * Castor 4, solid rocket used on the Maxus sounding rocket * Castor 30, solid rocket used on the

rocket * Castor 120, solid rocket used on the

rocket * Space Launch System Solid Rocket Booster, based on the

Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster The Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) was the first solid-propellant rocket to be used for primary propulsion on a vehicle used for human spaceflight. A pair of them provided 85% of the Space Shuttle's thrust at liftoff and for the first ...

Spacecraft

ISS-45 Cygnus 5 approaching the ISS - crop

* Al Yah 3, communications satellite for Al Yah Satellite Communications * HYLAS-4, communications satellite for Avanti Communications * SES-16, communications satellite for SES S.A. *

Landsat 9 Landsat 9 is an Earth observation satellite launched on 27 September 2021 from Vandenberg Space Launch Complex 3, Space Launch Complex-3E at Vandenberg Space Force Base on an Atlas V , Atlas V 401 launch vehicle. NASA is in charge of building, ...

, environmental satellite for

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

and

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

(USGS) * JPSS-2, weather and environmental satellite for

and

NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploratio ...

* ICESat-2, ice-topography satellite for

* Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS),

space telescope A space telescope (also known as space observatory) is a telescope in outer space used to observe astronomical objects. Suggested by Lyman Spitzer in 1946, the first operational telescopes were the American Orbiting Astronomical Observatory, OAO ...

for

* Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICE), science mission for

* Cygnus, automated cargo spacecraft to supply the ISS *

Dawn Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the diffuse sky radiation, appearance of indirect sunlight being Rayleigh scattering, scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc ha ...

, space probe for

currently in decaying orbit around Ceres

Munitions

* Mk310 PABM-T air burst rounds for MK44.

Firearms

* XM25 CDTE, an

airburst An air burst or airburst is the detonation of an explosive device such as an anti-personnel artillery shell or a nuclear weapon in the air instead of on contact with the ground or target. The principal military advantage of an air burst over ...

grenade launcher A grenade launcher is a weapon that fires a specially designed, large caliber projectile, often with an explosive, Smoke screen, smoke, or tear gas, gas warhead. Today, the term generally refers to a class of dedicated firearms firing unitary gre ...

References

{{Satcomm Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange Commercial launch service providers Companies based in Dulles, Virginia Manufacturing companies established in 2015 American companies established in 2015 Rocket engine manufacturers of the United States Private spaceflight companies Spacecraft manufacturers Ammunition manufacturers of the United States Former defense companies of the United States 2015 establishments in Virginia Orbital Sciences Corporation Innovation Systems 2018 mergers and acquisitions American corporate subsidiaries