NASA Awards Raytheon Two Contracts With a Combined Value of $1.7 Billion

NASA has awarded two sole-source contracts on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for the common ground system and a scientific instrument on the first Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS-1). JPSS is the restructured civilian portion of the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) that will make afternoon observations as it orbits Earth. The Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument contract is valued at approximately $314 million with a period of performance through September 2018. Under this contract, Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems will design, manufacture, test and deliver two VIIRS instruments. VIIRS will gather data on a wide range of Earth's properties, including the atmosphere, clouds, radiation budget, clear-air land and water surfaces, and sea surface temperature. Under the Common Ground System contract, valued at $1.4 billion, Raytheon will design, manufacture, test and deliver hardware, software, and related services for the mission operations of the JPSS ground system.