page_title: Orbital Sciences Corporation
section_title: Advanced Programs Group (APG)
hierarchical_section_title: Orbital Sciences Corporation / Business groups / Advanced Programs Group (APG)
caption_attribution_description: English: Cygnus 1 approaching the International Space Station.
context_page_description: Orbital Sciences Corporation was an American company specializing in the design, manufacture and launch of small- and medium- class space and rocket systems for commercial, military and other government customers. In 2014 Orbital merged with Alliant Techsystems to create a new company called Orbital ATK, Inc., which in turn was purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2018. The remnants of the former Orbital Sciences Corporation today are a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman and is known as Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems.
  Orbital was headquartered in Dulles, Virginia and publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange with the ticker symbol ORB. Orbital's primary products were satellites and launch vehicles, including low-Earth orbit, geosynchronous-Earth orbit and planetary spacecraft for communications, remote sensing, scientific and defense missions; ground- and air-launched rockets that delivered satellites into orbit; missile defense systems that were used as interceptor and target vehicles; and human-rated space systems for Earth-orbit, lunar and other missions. Orbital also provided satellite subsystems and space-related technical services to government agencies and laboratories.
context_section_description: Orbital's Advanced Programs Group focused on developing and producing human-rated space systems, satellites and related systems for national security space programs, and advanced flight systems for atmospheric and space missions.
  In support of human space systems, Orbital is one of two companies providing commercial cargo resupply services to the International Space Station for NASA. Orbital's medium-class rocket- Antares is used to launch the Cygnus advanced maneuvering spacecraft to deliver cargo to the ISS. Under the Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA, Orbital will perform eight cargo missions to the ISS. Operational flights began in 2013 from the new Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops Island in Virginia. In addition, the company is exploring opportunities to adapt the Cygnus design for other possible space exploration applications.
  For National Security Space Systems, Orbital provides products ranging from smaller, more affordable spacecraft busses to hosted payload applications. For Advanced Flight Systems, Orbital is applying its to design and build an intermediate-class air-launched rocket system for Stratolaunch Systems. Orbital has developed the operational concept and completed the preliminary design for the air-launched rocket. It will be responsible for the development, production, test and operations of the full system and related ground operations.
caption: Cygnus approaching ISS
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