NOAA Awards Space-Based Weather Forecasting Contract to 14 Companies

NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration is expanding its use of commercial satellite data to support weather forecasting, space weather monitoring and environmental research through a new 10-year procurement contract.

The Space-Based Environmental Monitoring Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity contract runs from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2036, with a five-year base period and a five-year option.

Initially, NOAA will work with 14 commercial providers across seven categories of environmental data.

The suppliers are:

- Spire Global Subsidiary, Inc.

- PlanetiQ (Space Sciences and Engineering, Inc.)

- Ethereal Space

- Precursor SPC

- Tomorrow.io

- Muon Space

- BAE Systems Space & Mission Systems, Inc.

- Orbital Micro Systems (Weather Stream)

- Hydrosat

- Tropical Weather Analytics, Inc.

- SpaceX

- Care Weather

- ICEYE US

- Umbra

NOAA can add additional vendors and data categories as operational requirements change.

The data will feed NOAA’s operational weather and space weather models, as well as research programs involving government agencies, universities and other scientific organizations.

NOAA Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction Taylor Jordan said the agency intends to use commercial environmental data to expand the availability and value of observations supporting weather forecasting and related applications.

Image credits: NOAA