USA 437

The NROL-146 mission consisted of an undisclosed number of small spacecraft into orbit for the National Reconnaissance Office's proliferated architecture of small satellites.

NROL-146 represents the first launch of an operational system following several demonstrations in recent years (USA 320, ..., 323, 328, ..., 331, 350, 351) to verify cost and performance. Smaller, more numerous satellites will allow for far more frequent revisits of critical areas of interest, leading to faster delivery of crucial intelligence.

Reportedly the satellites were built by SpaceX based on their Starshield busses with imaging payloads built by Northrop Grumman. Based on the size of Starshield, the number of satellites on the lanch may be around 20.

• The 1st batch of 21 satellites, called the NROL-146 launch, was launched on 22 May 2024 on a Falcon-9 v1.2 (Block 5) launch into a 70° orbit.
• A 2nd batch of 21 satellites, called the NROL-186 launch, launched in June 2024, is assumed to be similar.
• A 3rd batch of 21 satellites, called the NROL-113 launch, launched in August 2024, is also assumed to be part of this constellation.
• The 4th batch, called the NROL-167 launch, launched on 24 October 2024 consisted of 17 satellites. (Perhaps another type?)
• The 5th batch, called the NROL-149 launch, launched on 17 December 2024 consisted of 22 satellites.
• The 6th batch, called the NROL-153 launch, launched on 10 January 2025 consisted of 22 satellites.
• The 7th batch, called the NROL-57 launch, launched on 18 March 2025 consisted of 11(?) satellites. (Perhaps another type?)
• The 8th batch, called the NROL-192 launch, launched on 12 April 2025 consisted of 22 satellites.
• The 9th batch, called the NROL-145 launch, launched on 30 April 2025 consisted of 22 satellites.

The NROL-126 launch with only two satellites as well as other NRO Starshield launches without a NROL-designation are considered a different kind of payload.

Note: The NROL designations refer to the launch, not to the payload.