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Northrop Grumman
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<p>Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational <a href="/facts/Aerospace_manufacturer/fdGwdY85">aerospace</a> and <a href="/facts/Arms_industry/A8mywI9w">defense</a> company. With 97,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $40 billion, it is one of the world's largest <a href="/facts/Arms_industry/A8mywI9w">weapons manufacturers</a> and military technology providers. Formed in 1994 through <a href="/facts/Northrop_Corporation/X7DPKcx1">Northrop Corporation</a>'s purchase of <a href="/facts/Grumman_Aerospace/0qsyLV6J">Grumman Aerospace</a>, Northrop Grumman ranked as the <a href="/facts/List_of_defense_contractors/B3C16ad5">third-largest defense contractor in the world</a> as of 2022. The firm ranked No. 101 on the 2022 <a href="/facts/Fortune_500/BLeHWymz"><i>Fortune</i> 500</a> list of America's largest corporations. </p><p>Northrop Grumman and its industry partners have won the <a href="/facts/Collier_Trophy/qprIInz7">Collier Trophy</a> nine times, most recently for the development and production of the <a href="/facts/James_Webb_Space_Telescope/w4GAWnWX">James Webb Space Telescope</a>, an <a href="/facts/Space_telescope/BtI46sDX">orbiting observatory</a> launched in 2021. </p><p>Northrop Grumman leads the development of the <a href="/facts/B-21_Raider/zejqSUNN">B-21 Raider</a>, a long-range, <a href="/facts/Stealth_aircraft/yzFCw70N">stealth</a> <a href="/facts/Strategic_bomber/g0PWamDC">strategic bomber</a> that can drop conventional and <a href="/facts/Thermonuclear_weapon/T9zFe3H0">nuclear weapons</a>; it will replace Northrop's own <a href="/facts/B-2_Spirit/5xx6l0AN">B-2 Spirit</a>, the world's only known stealth bomber. Among its other projects are the production of the solid rocket boosters for NASA's <a href="/facts/Space_Launch_System/DbGCgH1W">Space Launch System</a> program. It was the sole bidder on the Air Force's <a href="/facts/Ground_Based_Strategic_Deterrent/IjIaNoj3">Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program</a>, which aims to develop and build a new <a href="/facts/Intercontinental_ballistic_missile/0vKnj2Y7">intercontinental ballistic missile</a>. </p>