MDA Space Unveils 'MIDNIGHT' Space Control Platform For Defence Missions

(RTTNews) - MDA Space Ltd. (MDA, MDA.TO) on Monday introduced MIDNIGHT, a space control platform for defence organizations to defend and protect their low Earth orbit space assets.

The Canadian space technology company's MIDNIGHT is a maneuverable spacecraft that leverages high-reliability rendezvous and proximity operations or RPO to detect, identify, counter and deter threats to critical space assets and orbits.

The spacecraft is built to support a range of defence applications, including on-orbit surveillance, asset relocation and satellite refueling.

The MDA MIDNIGHT platform integrates a suite of active and passive payload capabilities alongside advanced robotics, enabling it to convert space domain awareness into actionable decision-making for defence organizations operating in an increasingly contested environment.

Mike Greenley, CEO of MDA Space said that the system is backed by decades of mission planning, satellite operations and on-orbit robotics expertise, combined with advanced digital technologies and high-volume commercial production capacity.

MIDNIGHT is also designed to address emerging customer requirements by offering a rapidly configurable, buildable and deployable solution to respond to evolving threats in space.

Its initial mission will focus on collaborating with multiple assets in low Earth orbit while delivering protective and defensive capabilities. These include on-orbit inspection and reporting of satellite status, electronic countermeasures detection, attribution and mitigation, as well as cooperative satellite capture and release. The spacecraft can also de-orbit non-operational customer assets to help manage space debris.

The platform will be supported by flight controller team with experience in free-flyer, over 100 capture missions and long duration robotics operations. For selective customers, operations can be conducted through the company's mission control centre infrastructure.

MIDNIGHT also builds on the company's broader technology portfolio, incorporating capabilities from its commercial robotics systems MDA SKYMAKER and satellite bus platforms MDA AURORA.

MDA said it is actively pursuing partnerships with military and commercial payload providers to support future mission profiles and expand its on-orbit capabilities.

On the New York Stock Exchange, shares of MDA space were losing 2.12 percent in overnight trading at $29.94, after closing Friday's regular trading 0.39 percent higher.