An Arizona-based defense company is aiming to address a key limitation of traditional missile defense radar systems: their reliance on large, fixed infrastructure.
To do so, Assured Space is introducing Penoptix, a fully transportable X-band radar designed for rapidly changing battlefield environments.
At its core, the system features a 3-square-meter (32.3-square-foot) active aperture that can be networked with additional units to deliver what the company describes as an “all-seeing” capability.
This modular approach allows operators to expand coverage, reduce single points of failure, and maintain functionality in degraded or jammed environments.
The radar also adopts a “fight-as-you-come” operational model, enabling rapid deployment, frequent relocation, and continued effectiveness even if individual nodes are lost.
“Legacy radar systems were designed for a threat environment that no longer exists,” said Sean McDaniel, chief executive officer of Assured Space.
“Penoptix addresses the future of missile defense with a mobile, modular system that is easy to replace and easy to defend. Most importantly, it saves lives by giving our warfighters, friends, and allies the scalable, all-seeing capability they need to defeat modern threats.”
A Closer Look at Penoptix
Built on the company’s CapLink Array technology, the system uses advanced gallium nitride-based transmitter and receiver modules to deliver more than 50 decibels of isotropic gain.
It can integrate with existing radar and command-and-control systems and operate across multiple communications pathways, including terrestrial, satellite, and wireless networks.
Penoptix supports mission sets including missile warning and defense, drone detection, forward operating base protection, and mobile and contingency operations.
It also offers ±65 degrees of azimuth steering and 0 to 90 degrees of elevation coverage, supported by mechanical pivoting.
