According to the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the satellite will aid in overhead reconnaissance activities.
The NRO conceived, built, and operates NROL-87 to serve its overhead reconnaissance mission, according to the statement.
The NRO provided little further specifics about the satellite, other than it will “supply a wide range of timely intelligence information,” according to the NRO.
The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), a section of the US Defense Department, is based near Washington, in northern Virginia, and runs a huge network of surveillance satellites.
The NRO’s first satellite, NROL-87, will be launched in 2022, and it will be the third time the agency has employed a Falcon 9 rocket.
In the last two years, the NRO has launched 16 more satellites.
