Tech_Issue 1 2009_0127_Final:TechToday_012709 ... - Raytheon

Raytheon Innovations
making HEADLINES
Raytheon’s newest innovations have
garnered attention from around the
world. Media outlets are highlighting
new capabilities the company has identified
and matured, most notably in the areas of
force protection, space sensing, search and
rescue, and advanced robotics.
Protecting Soldiers in the Blink
of the Eye
With its heading “Bullets That Shoot
Bullets,” TIME magazine gets to the heart of
Raytheon’s Active Protection System (APS),
featured eighth among the magazine’s “50
Best Inventions of 2008.” TIME describes
APS as “Star Wars for soldiers,” noting it is
designed to protect them from short-range
attack while enabling the U.S. Army to
develop vehicles requiring less armor.
APS interception
APS uses vertical launch technology
that launches an interceptor to shoot
down rocket-propelled grenades or
anti-tank guided missiles coming in
from any direction.
“Hitting bullets with bullets, so to speak,
requires very complex and inventive technology,”
said Glynn Raymer, vice president
of Raytheon’s Network Centric Systems
(NCS) Combat Systems business. “We view
TIME’s selection as reflective of the APS
team’s commitment to innovation, and its
dedication to delivering the very best force
protection technology to our soldiers.”
Raytheon NCS and Missile Systems are
developing APS with U.S. Army Future
Combat Systems (FCS) One Team
partners — the FCS Lead Systems
Integration team of Boeing and Science
Applications International, and
BAE Systems.
Searching for Ice on the Moon
Raytheon had a hand in another of TIME
magazine’s “Best Inventions of 2008.”
Number three on the list was NASA’s Lunar
Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), for which a
Raytheon team led by Space and Airborne
Systems (SAS) provided key components of
the miniaturized-radio frequency system.
The LRO is set for launch in spring 2009,
and the mini-RF system will help to determine
whether the polar regions of the
moon contain ice.
Deposits of ice and water have a relatively
large radar reflectivity and also a large circular
polarization ratio. By bouncing a rightcircular
polarized signal off the lunar surface,
then calculating the ratio of the rightcircular
polarized to the left-circular polarized
return signals, areas of interest can be
identified. The circular polarization ratio
plus high radar reflectivity will give scientists
possible locations of water deposits.
In October, a similar system known as
Mini-SAR (for synthetic aperture radar) was
launched aboard India’s Chandrayaan-1
spacecraft, now in orbit around the moon.
Both the LRO and Chandrayaan-1 missions
will study and map the lunar surface in
advance of possible manned missions
to the moon.
Under contract to the U.S. Navy, Raytheon
provided the antenna (see cover image),
transmitter, analog receiver and software
for the mini-RF system for both missions.
The company also supplied systems engineering
and integration and test support.
Feature
Preparing to test the miniature RF system
Raytheon’s work on the mini-RF programs
takes advantage of the company’s experience
in support of the U.S. Department of
Defense’s operationally responsive space initiative,
which calls for smaller, less expensive
satellites that can provide scientific or tactical
information on an as-needed basis. Because
of its low development cost and miniaturization,
the mini-RF technology provides a
wealth of sensing capabilities in a relatively
inexpensive and easily adapted platform.
“The responsive space concept holds great
promise for many kinds of future missions,
and Raytheon is proud to extend its leading
role in that future with the mini-RF payloads,”
said Bill Hart, vice president
for SAS Space Systems. “We’re excited to
be applying the lessons from our experience
in operationally responsive space to these
important lunar exploration projects.”
Continued on page 26
RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGY TODAY 2009 ISSUE 1 25