Christine Thropp
Ball Aerospace will help the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study instrument designs for measuring atmospheric composition and ocean color as part of its Geostationary Extended Observations program.
The company said Thursday it was selected for two 20-month studies to inform the development of next generation geostationary weather satellite constellation the agency is undertaking to meet monitoring needs and address environmental challenges.
Ball will base the GeoXO program efforts on its environmental sensing systems, specifically the Ball Operational Weather Instrument Evolution-Atmospheric Composition and BOWIE-Ocean Color hyperspectral passive imaging instruments.
“These studies are just the first steps in NOAA’s efforts to improve the nation’s ability to monitor, forecast and understand the conditions impacting weather, climate and health; from air and water quality to coastline health,” said Makenzie Lystrup, vice president and general manager of civil space at Ball Aerospace.
The two new studies expand the company’s work with NOAA on the program. In October 2021, it was tapped to conduct the GeoXO Phase A Sounder study.
