CSO visits 15th SPSS at Maui Space Surveillance Complex [Image 9 of 14]

HAWAII, UNITED STATES

09.16.2025

Photo by 1st Lt. Laura Anderson 

Space Operations Command

U.S. Space Force Col. Barry Croker, Mission Delta 2 commander, left, and Lt. Col. Douglas Thornton, 15th Space Surveillance Squadron commander, provide background on MD2 and 15th SPSS operations during a Maui Space Surveillance Complex site visit in Maui, Hawaii, Sept. 16, 2025. The 15th SPSS is a component of MD2 that fuses mission operations with research and development to develop, assess, deliver and operate cutting-edge space domain awareness capabilities to support warfighter needs.

GBOSS upgrades to the legacy Ground Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance System at the White Sands Missile Range were completed and reached operational acceptance on June 27, 2025, and the upgrades to the MSSC in Hawaii are currently underway. The GBOSS system was built to continue to meet the Space Surveillance Network mission needs and to increase SDA by more accurately identifying and tracking resident space objects in orbit.

Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman added, “GBOSS improves our ability to map the space operating environment. The upgrade not only improves sensitivity and boosts the number of objects we can track, it also takes advantage of data provided by commercial sensors to help with our unquenchable thirst for more SDA data.”

The U.S. Space Force continues to invest in capabilities like GBOSS to advance SDA capabilities that offer timely, relevant and actionable understanding of the operational environment that allows military forces to plan, integrate, execute and assess space operations. (U.S. Air Force photo by 1st Lt. Laura Anderson)

• Date Taken: 09.16.2025
• Date Posted: 09.19.2025 02:35
• Photo ID: 9326171
• VIRIN: 250916-F-OD886-1115
• Resolution: 6048x4024
• Size: 1.02 MB
• Location: HAWAII, US