SAN FRANCISCO — As the U.S. Navy and Lockheed Martin prepare for the planned Feb. 16 launch of the first satellite in a long-overdue military communications constellation, contractors are scrambling to finish developing the waveform that will enable U.S. forces to take advantage of the spacecraft’s most advanced features.

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Debra Werner is a correspondent for SpaceNews based in San Francisco. Debra earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of California, Berkeley, and a master’s degree in Journalism from Northwestern University. She is a recipient...