Summary: Statement of Work – NASA Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition and Evaluation for Sustainable Land Imaging Commercialization

This Statement of Work (SOW) establishes a framework for NASA's acquisition and evaluation of commercial Earth observation (EO) data in support of the Sustainable Land Imaging (SLI) Commercialization project. The one-year contract requires contractors to provide commercial satellite imagery and related services to enhance the Landsat terrestrial record by integrating commercial EO data, increasing revisit frequency, improving spatial resolution, and enabling production of science-quality surface reflectance (SR), surface temperature (ST), and higher-level biophysical products. The contractor must deliver multispectral imaging products with spatial resolution finer than 30 meters (ideally 10 meters or better) with geolocation accuracy compatible with Landsat and USGS Analysis Ready Data (ARD) standards, spectral bands supporting derivation of SR, ST, vegetation indices, and evapotranspiration, and temporal coverage that significantly enhances revisit frequency for SLI Commercialization priority regions. Additionally, the contractor shall provide surface reflectance and surface temperature products calibrated to Landsat and ARD standards, higher-level science products including vegetation indices and evapotranspiration estimates, prototype AI-ready data formats, comprehensive ancillary data and metadata, technical support for data access, documentation and training materials, and participation in technical interchange meetings and joint evaluation activities.

The evaluation period spans 12 to 18 months during which NASA and USGS will systematically assess contractor data for scientific utility, Landsat compatibility, and suitability for broader acquisition. Evaluation criteria include radiometric performance (absolute and relative accuracy, noise, inter-band consistency), geometric performance (geolocation accuracy and co-registration with Landsat), temporal consistency (sensor stability monitoring), algorithm performance for derived products, uncertainty characterization at product and pixel levels, and compliance with USGS ARD and NASA Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 (HLS) product specifications. The contractor must support joint calibration/validation studies, collaborate on metric development for Landsat compatibility assessment, conduct experiments integrating data into USGS ARD and NASA HLS pipelines, and participate in focused studies on thermal sensing capabilities, focal plane advancement, and cryogenic cooling approaches. NASA and USGS will provide periodic evaluation summaries identifying data characteristics meeting Landsat standards, gaps and recommended improvements, and potential pathways to operationalization. The contract includes provisions for requirements updates, licensing consistent with CSDA practices enabling broad scientific use while protecting commercial interests, data archiving and long-term preservation, and a final closeout review documenting evaluation outcomes and recommendations for future acquisition strategies.