Commercial Space Domain Awareness (SDA), Sensors as a Service

1. THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT ANNOUNCEMENT ONLY. This notice does not constitute a commitment by the Government. All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary, and the Government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the Government.  The Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of submissions or of the information received, or to provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted under this announcement.

This Sources Sought seeks information on commercially available space surveillance systems that provide timely and accurate Space Domain Awareness (SDA) data specifically for the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) regime, delivered directly to mission applications.  The goal is to identify commercial vendors offering sensors as a service, today or in the future, with a capability for individual sensor tasking directly from a pre-existing US Government mission application layer. The mission application layer is the software suite that supports LEO SDA by providing a foundational understanding of space environment that enables tactical command and control of commercial sensors to close a feedback loop.  The Government is particularly interested in solutions that prioritize data quality, verification, and traceability to ensure the reliability of information used in time-critical decision-making processes. This Sources Sought Announcement is issued solely for informational and planning purposes only and is not a solicitation.

2.  The Government has a growing need for tactical SDA in LEO, driven by the rapid increase in space objects and the evolving complexities of this increasingly congested orbital environment. SSC/SZB requires near real-time space object discovery, tracking, characterization, and custody within LEO, with the ability to task commercial sensors directly from a mission application layer to achieve specific objectives. This capability is essential for:

• Enhanced LEO Situational Awareness: Obtaining precise and up-to-the-minute information on LEO objects of interest, including their position, trajectory, and potential behaviors.
• Rapid Conjunction Assessment in LEO: Evaluating potential collision risks in LEO promptly and accurately to support maneuver planning and collision avoidance for our assets.
• Anomaly Resolution in LEO: Investigating unexpected or anomalous behavior of LEO objects quickly and efficiently to ensure the safety and security of our space assets.

3.  This Sources Sought seeks to conduct market research on commercial space surveillance systems that provide the following capabilities tailored for the LEO environment:

• Data Types:
  • While photometry, spectroscopy, and wide-band Space MASINT (SOI) is of interest, metric (positional) data is the primary need.
  • Metric data in the form of Radar observations, electro-optical observations (visible, SWIR, LWIR), active RF, and/or passive RF (TDOA/FDOA) are desired. 
  • Data formats that comply with Unified Data Library (UDL) schemas.
  • Existing Application Programming Interface (API)s or other integration mechanisms with deployed software on Government networks to support interoperability.

4.SMALL BUSINESS CONSIDERATION

a. The pertinent NAICS code for this announcement is 541715

b.  Any business, regardless of size, in this area of expertise is encouraged to provide a response to this sources sought.  Responses from small and small disadvantaged businesses are highly encouraged and the Government encourages teaming/partnering.

c.   This requirement involves data that are subject to export control requirements under the Arms Export Control Act (Department of State) or the Export Administration Regulations (Department of Commerce). Interested parties desiring to do business with the Space Force shall be registered in the DoD Central Contractor Registry with a CAGE code.

5. RESPONSES  Responses to this sources sought must be received via this Microsoft Forms Link https://forms.osi.apps.mil/r/LwWbqYZRy0 no later than 6 June 2025. Included is a fillable PDF to assist in filling out the Forms submission but only Forms submissions will be reviewed. Submittals that contain classified, sensitive, or proprietary materials must be coordinated with either the primary or secondary points of contact.

6. SSC/SZB and SSC/PKL Advisory and Assistance Services (A&AS) support contractors are supporting the Government on this effort. As such, information submitted in response to this sources sought may be released to individuals who work for the following companies: Odyssey Systems Consulting Group, The Tech 7 Company and Tecolote. Please immediately notify the primary point of contact if your company does not consent to the release of proposal information to these company personnel.