The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command’s Assured Access to Space (SSC AATS) initiative have launched another secret mission payload from Space Launch Complex-4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on April 20, 2025, at 8:29 a.m. EDT.
Dubbed NROL-145, the secret launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 is the tenth overall of the intelligence organization’s proliferated architecture mission since the program’s inception and the fourth of this year.
While the details of the secret launch’s payload likely remain classified, security industry site Clearance Jobs suggests NROL-145 may include a Starshield “spy” satellite built by either Northrop Grumman or SpaceX. Adapted from SpaceX’s Starlink global communications network, the Starshield network of satellites provides the U.S. and allied militaries with additional capabilities. Along with communications, these capabilities may include advanced target tracking, tracking of debris, radio and optical reconnaissance, and early missile warning.
“Over the past two years, NRO has launched more than 200 satellites, creating the largest and most capable government constellation on orbit in our nation’s history,” a statement from the NRO explained.
Latest Secret Launch Was Third in Eight Days
Although the NRO was officially created in 1961, the U.S. did not admit to performing reconnaissance from space until 1978. The organization’s existence wasn’t officially acknowledged until 1992, when it was declassified.
The U.S. Space Force was formally launched in December 2019, making it the newest of the country’s military branches. Since its inception, the Space Force has been tasked with protecting military and civilian assets in space. More recently, the organization has been supplementing plans for negotiating space conflicts with plans and secret simulations to prepare the U.S. for an all-out war in space.
“We must simultaneously be ready to defend American spacepower as well as to protect our forces against hostile spacepower,” Space Force General Chance Saltzman told recent attendees of the Air & Space Forces Association War Symposium.
The third mission launch in just the past eight days, NROL-145, was the first mission launched in conjunction with the SSC AATS under the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 3 Lane 1 Launch Service NRO Task Order awarded in October 2024
“This was our first Phase 3 launch, coming only months after establishing this new contract,” explained Col. Jim Horne, Launch Execution Senior Materiel Leader. “The Lane 1 path is ideal for shorter, more responsive mission timelines in addition to being the ideal entry avenue for prospective NSSL providers.”
More Launches Scheduled Through 2029
The NRO says 2025 will “continue to be a dynamic year” with another 12 secret launches already on the schedule. BY the end of the launch contract in 2029, the organization says that half of the planned launches will continue to expand the Proliferated Architecture of “spy” satellites, while the other half will ensure “sustained growth and innovation.”
“NRO’s ability to leverage multiple acquisition approaches demonstrates NRO’s commitment to delivering critical national systems on orbit faster than ever before.”
Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.