
Mission Area
Air and Missile Defense
Revolutionizing the Art of Defense
Johns Hopkins APL’s Air and Missile Defense Mission Area creates advanced technologies and capabilities to protect U.S. and allied fleets and deployed forces from air and missile attack.
Performing this vital mission in an increasingly complex environment, we address new and emerging threats posed by advanced long-range ballistic and cruise missiles. We devise, develop, engineer, test, and evaluate solutions that address today’s—and tomorrow’s—air and missile defense needs, and we apply our expertise to make current systems more effective, adapt technologies for new missions, and develop novel technologies for future use.
Highlights
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Testing Air and Missile Defense Radar
APL teamed with industry and the Above Water Sensors Directorate of Program Executive Office Integrated Warfare Systems on two successful tests of the AN/SPY-6(V), a wideband digital beam-forming sensor known as the Air and Missile Defense Radar. -
Test Target Prototyping
A cross-APL team of engineers, working with the Missile Defense Agency’s (MDA) Target and Countermeasures Directorate and other government and industry partners, develops cost-effective solutions for MDA to support live-fire testing of interceptors, sensors, and fire control systems. -
Optical Communications at Sea
We successfully demonstrated a high-bandwidth free-space optical (FSO) communications system between two moving ships, proving operational utility of FSO technology in the maritime environment.
Recent News
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News
Sep 14, 2023Johns Hopkins APL Provides Critical Contributions to Successful Ballistic Missile Intercept Test
APL — in cooperation with the U.S. Missile Defense Agency and the U.S. Navy — demonstrated the capability to detect, track, engage and intercept a medium-range ballistic missile target in the terminal phase of flight. -
News
Jun 23, 2023Johns Hopkins APL, University of Colorado Boulder Ink Research Collaboration Partnership
Researchers from APL and the University of Colorado Boulder are teaming up on a project to better understand and eventually predict wear and damage affecting thermal protection systems. -
News
Jun 19, 2023AIAA Fosters Connection, Feedback and Innovation for Johns Hopkins APL’s Zittle
AIAA, or the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, is the world’s largest technical society dedicated to the aerospace profession, with more than 30,000 members worldwide. APL’s Kyle Zittle has been involved with the society since his student days at the University of Maryland and was recently named the director of AIAA Region 1.