NASA Awards $60 Million Contract for NOAA’s Space Weather Program
By NASA information center // November 15, 2024
NASA & SPACE NEWS
(NASA) – On behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NASA has selected the Southwest Research Institute of San Antonio to build three coronagraphs for the Lagrange 1 Series project, part of NOAA’s Space Weather Next program.
Once operational, the coronagraphs will provide critical data to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center, which issues forecasts, warnings, and alerts that help mitigate space weather impacts, including electric power outages and interruption to communications and navigation systems.
This cost-plus-fixed-fee contract is valued at approximately $60 million. The anticipated period of performance is from this November through January 2034, concluding after the second coronagraph is launched aboard a NOAA spacecraft. The third coronagraph will be delivered as a flight spare.
This contract award marks a transfer of coronagraph development from the government to the U.S. commercial sector.
The contract scope includes design, analysis, development, fabrication, integration, test, verification, and evaluation of the coronagraphs; launch support; supply and maintenance of ground support equipment; and support of post-launch instrument operations at the NOAA Satellite Operations Facility.
The work will occur at Southwest Research Institute’s facility in San Antonio.
The coronagraphs will observe the density structure of the Sun’s faint outermost atmosphere — the corona — and will detect Earth-directed coronal mass ejections shortly after they erupt, providing the longest possible lead time for geomagnetic storm watches.
With this forewarning, public and private organizations affected by space weather can take action to protect their assets. The coronagraphs will also provide data continuity from the Space Weather follow-on Lagrange 1 mission.
NASA and NOAA oversee the development, launch, testing, and operation of all the satellites in the project.
NOAA is the program owner, providing the requirements and funding and managing the program, operations, data products, and dissemination to users. NASA and its commercial partners develop and build the instruments and spacecraft and provide launch services on behalf of NOAA.
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