NASA Awards Infrared Sounder Contract For First JPSS Spacecraft

Steve Cole

Headquarters, Washington     

WASHINGTON -- NASA, on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has awarded a sole source contract to ITT Corporation of Ft. Wayne, Ind. The award is for the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) instrument planned for flight on the first Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS-1) in 2014.

JPSS is the restructured civilian portion of the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS). This includes the satellites and sensors supporting civil weather and climate measurements and a shared ground infrastructure with the Department of Defense weather satellite system.

NASA is the procurement agent for these assets, and the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., is the lead for acquisition for the program. This is a cost-reimbursement contract of approximately $98.6 million, with a period of performance through September 2014.

Under this contract, ITT will manufacture, test and deliver the CrIS, support instrument integration on JPSS-1, and provide launch and post-launch support. The instrument will be identical to the CrIS planned for flight on the NPOESS Preparatory Project mission.

CrIS is the first in a series of advanced operational instruments that will provide detailed atmospheric temperature and moisture observations for weather and climate applications. This high-spectral resolution infrared instrument will measure atmospheric temperatures, water vapor and trace gases. Forecasters use the data in computer models to improve global and regional predictions of weather patterns, storm tracks and precipitation. This information will significantly improve climate prediction and short- and long-term weather forecasting.