NEON Program Overview.pdf
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- Request for Information - Near Earth Orbit Network Series-1 Project Flight Elements Federal contract opportunity
- Solicitation number
- RFI-NEON-S1-2025
About this file
This is a program overview presentation from December 2024 detailing NOAA's Near Earth Orbit Network (NEON) program, which aims to provide global measurements of earth systems through satellites managed by NOAA and federal, commercial, and international partners.
The presentation outlines three major projects: QuickSounder (launching April 2026), Series-1 (2032-2037), and Series-2 (2033-2049). QuickSounder is a small microwave sounding satellite demonstrating operational observations using "New Space" capabilities. Series-1 consists of 4 satellites with Sounder for Microwave-based Applications (SMBA) instruments for numerical weather prediction. Series-2 is a planned 25-satellite constellation providing comprehensive observational requirements through SMBA Block 2 sounders, infrared sounders (SIRBA), and weather imagers. The program emphasizes commercial partnerships, with recent achievements including a CRADA with Microsoft Azure Orbital, contract award to SwRI for QuickSounder spacecraft in October 2023, and completion of SMBA Phase A studies in August 2024. The program supports Department of Commerce and NOAA strategic goals for climate monitoring, weather prediction, and U.S. leadership in commercial space.
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Office of LEO Observations 1.1NEON Program | December 2024
December 2024
Program Overview
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Programs Division (LPD) – Code 470
NEON Program | December 2024 2
Department of Commerce and NOAA Strategic Goals
• NEON provides essential climate, weather, and environmental observations from LEO in support of Department of Commerce (DoC) and NOAA Strategic Plans, specifically
– U.S. DoC Strategic Goal 1: “Drive U.S. Innovation and Global Competitiveness”
◦ Strategic objective 1.7: “Advance US Leadership in the Global Commercial Space Industry”
◦ Strategy 5: “Advance development, use, and application of space-based Earth observation capabilities to empower better decision making by the public and private sector”
– NOAA Strategic Goal 1: “Build a Climate Ready Nation”
◦ Strategic Objective 1.5.2, “Innovative Space-based Observations” and
◦ Strategic Objective 1.5.3, “Expand Commercial Partnerships And New Technology”
– Data uses include the numerical weather prediction (NWP) models, fire and flood models, atmospheric chemistry observations, and multiple land imagery products
NEON is a framework to provide global measurements of earth systems through satellites managed by NOAA and federal, commercial, and international partners
NEON Program | December 2024 3
NEON Program | December 2024 4
Atmospheric Rivers Impacting the West Coast
LEO precipitation data helps meteorologists and emergency responders predict and respond to severe weather events
NOAA-20 image from January 30, 2024. A cyclone off the West Coast caused an atmospheric river
The Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) instrument’s total precipitable water (TPW) product indicating an atmospheric river over the West Coast
NEON Program | December 2024 5
Low Earth Orbit Observations
To be supplied
LEO Polar Sun-Synchronous Orbit 3-Plane Backbone
LTAN: Local Time Ascending Node
Operational orbits are usually referred to by their “sunlight node”:
❑ 13:30 LTAN – Afternoon ❑ 17:30 LTAN – Early-morning ❑ 21:30 LTAN – Mid-morning
NEON Program | December 2024 7
NOAA LEO Satellite Programs
Continuous coverage is critical for a Weather-Ready Nation.
NEON Program | December 2024 88
NEON Program | December 2024 9
LEO Observations Contribute to Most Geophysical Products in the NESDIS Level Requirements
NESDIS Level Requirements – Geophysical Products
Multipurpose VIS/NIR/IR Imagery Soundings from IR/MW/ROMW Imagery UV Imagery Radar Imagery
Atmosphere Cryo Land & Surf Hydro Water & Coasts Space
*Products derived from non-LEO observations
NEON Program | December 2024 10
NEON Program Overview
• Evolve the LEO architecture to exploit and deploy new observational capabilities:
– Continuity of the product baseline and finding pathways for new observational needs
– Partnerships, commercial, and NOAA-developed approaches
– A disaggregated architecture exploiting commercial “New Space”; accepting greater risk at the element level while maintaining high operational availability
• Initial focus on:
– Exploiting commercial investment, expertise, and innovation
– Gaining experience with obtaining commercial flight-related elements (e.g. spacecraft, mission operations, launch vehicles)
– Developing the next generation microwave sounders critical to Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP)
– Maintaining continuity of key partnerships supported by the JPSS Program
NEON Program | December 2024 11
Leveraging Commercial Space
POES
• In April 2022, a Cooperative Research & Development Agreement (CRADA) with Microsoft Azure Orbital determined cloud-based commercialization of satellite operations for POES was feasible.
• Parsons was selected in October 2022 to provide engineering services and flight operations support to the POES NOAA- 15, NOAA-18, and NOAA-19 satellites.
• Plans are to continue POES satellite operations through FY25
• In December 2022, DOC approved a small, microwave sounding satellite known as QuickSounder to demonstrate operational observations can be obtained using “New Space” on a compressed schedule
• The spacecraft and bundled mission services were awarded in October
2023 to SwRI for launch in 2026
• NEON maximizes NOAA science investment while leveraging commercial strengths
• NEON acquisition strategy and program planning are actively informed by lessons-learned from the QuickSounder and POES efforts
• Phase A studies completed for
NEON next-gen microwave sounder (SMBA)
NEON Program | December 2024 12
QuickSounder Project
Mission Description
• A small, microwave sounding satellite to demonstrate operational observations can be obtained using “New Space” on a compressed schedule
• Polar-orbit sun-synchronous ~17:30 LTAN
• Launch commitment date: April 2026
• 3-year planned mission life: Class D
Instrument Complement
• Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS)
– 22 Channels
– 23.8 GHz – 183.3 GHz
– Volume: 70cm x 40cm x 60cm
– Mass: 85kg
– Orbital Average Power: 130W
Status
✔ Mission Concept Review – November 2021
✔ DoC MS 2 – December 2022
✔ New contract action for ATMS – December 2022
✔ Spacecraft & Mission Ops contract awarded – October 2023
✔ System Requirements Review – March 2024
✔ Launch vehicle awarded – October 2024
• Critical Design Review – January 2025 ATMS QuickSounder
Satellite
NEON Program | December 2024 13
Series-1 Project
Mission Description
• A block of small satellites providing microwave sounding observations essential to the performance of the NWP models
• Single instrument per satellite (4 satellites)
• Polar-orbit sun-synchronous 13:30/17:30 LTAN
• Planned launch dates: 2032-2037
• Operations: 2032-2042
• Operational life of 5 years per satellite
Instrument Complement
• Sounder for Microwave-based Applications (SMBA)
– Successor to the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder on
JPSS
– 4 flight units for Series-1
– 8 Bands 23.8 GHz – 229 GHz
– 6 hyperspectral
– 4 with Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) detection
– Allocated resources
– Volume: 140cm x 120cm x 120cm
– Mass: 150kg
– Orbital Average Power: 295W
Status
✔ Sounder Studies – 2020
✔ Mission Design Studies – 2020
✔ SMBA Phase A Studies – August 2023 - August 2024
• Mission Concept Review – Q1 2025
• DoC MS 2a – Q2 2025
• SMBA Phase B-D award – Q2 2026
• System Requirements & Mission Design Review – Q3 2026
NEON Program | December 2024 14
NEON Program | December 2024 15
Series-2 Project - Notional
Mission Description
• A block of small satellites providing all mission critical observational requirements
• Single instrument per satellite (25 satellites)
• Polar-orbit sun-synchronous 13:30/17:30 LTAN
• Planned launch dates: 2033-2049
• Operations: 2034 – 2054
• Primary operational life of 4 years per satellite
Instrument Complement
• SMBA Block 2 – Quantity 8
• Sounder for Infrared-based Applications (SIRBA) – Quantity 11
– Successor to the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) on JPSS
– Hyperspectral Infrared
– CrIS-like performance or better, with improved spatial resolution
• Weather Imager – Quantity 5
– ~16 Channels including low light imagery
– Visible/Near Infrared and Shortwave, Mid-wave, Longwave
Infrared
– Spatial resolution of 750m or better at nadir
Status
✔ Sounder Studies – 2020
✔ Mission Design Studies – 2020
• SIRBA Phase A Studies award – Q2 2026
• Mission Concept Review – Q2 2027
• SIRBA Phase B-D award – Q4 2028
• System Requirements & Mission Design Review – Q3 2029
• DoC MS 2 – Q4 2029
NEON Program | December 2024 16
Thank you
JPSS.PROGRAM @JPSSPROGRAM @NOAASATELLITES
| Slide 1: Program Overview |
| Slide 2: Department of Commerce and NOAA Strategic Goals |
| Slide 3 |
| Slide 4: Atmospheric Rivers Impacting the West Coast |
| Slide 5 |
| Slide 6: LEO Polar Sun-Synchronous Orbit 3-Plane Backbone |
| Slide 7: NOAA LEO Satellite Programs |
| Slide 8 |
| Slide 9: LEO Observations Contribute to Most Geophysical Products in the NESDIS Level Requirements |
| Slide 10: NEON Program Overview |
| Slide 11: Leveraging Commercial Space |
| Slide 12: QuickSounder Project |
| Slide 13: Series-1 Project |
| Slide 14 |
| Slide 15: Series-2 Project - Notional |
| Slide 16 |
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