Christine Thropp
Ball Aerospace and Raytheon Technologies will conduct a twenty-month study of an atmospheric composition instrument for a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite system for Earth observations.
NASA said Wednesday Ball Aerospace & Technologies and Raytheon Intelligence & Space were chosen for the Geostationary Extended Observations ACX instrument Phase A Study that will inform the agency about the possible development schedule, risks, costs and performance of the imaging spectrometer.
Both contractors will receive firm-fixed-price contracts worth $5 million and will perform instrument concept development at their respective facilities.
NOAA seeks to expand Earth observation efforts from geostationary orbit through the GeoXO system. It will continue the mission of the GOES-R series and provide needed information to address environmental challenges.
An implementation contract for the ACX instrument is expected to be announced in 2024 while the GeoXO satellite series is planned to be operational by the early 2030s.
