SAR Imagery Blanket Purchase Agreement goes to Capella Space
A five year blanket purchase agreement (BPA) by NASA's Earth Science Division for the purchase of high resolution SAR imagery and data has been awarded to Capella Space. The agreement will make SAR imagery available for evaluation to determine their suitability for advancing NASA's science and application goals.
"With the advent of SAR from commercial sources like Capella Space, we are interested in how these small satellite constellations can supplement our existing NASA datasets and capabilities.
Dr. Will McCarty, NASA
Under this sole-source agreement, NASA will have access to Capella's commercial SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) image products, which range from 0.5 to 1.2 meter ground resolution and represent one of the highest resolution imagery capabilities offered by any SAR provider. The agreement will facilitate fixed price call-off contracts valued up to $7 million per call, effective for five years from the date of the agreement.
Additional Scientific Perspective Provided by SAR Imagery BPA
This SAR imagery BPA is funded by the Earth Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in support of NASA's Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program. SAR Imagery procured under this agreement will provide NASA's Earth Science Division with additional perspective for scientific research of Earth's interconnected systems, enhancing existing NASA datasets.
"The BPA Framework allows NASA's Earth Science Division to take advantage of our growing constellation of commercial SAR satellites across a wide diversity of orbits. We look forward to supporting this highly valuable scientific research effort," said Payam Banazadeh, CEO and founder of Capella Space.
"With the advent of SAR from commercial sources like Capella Space, we are interested in how these small satellite constellations can supplement our existing NASA datasets and capabilities. Ultimately, we aim to leverage these data to provide new perspectives on the scientific priorities of the Earth Science Division," said Dr. Will McCarty, NASA CSDA Program Scientist.
This award builds on the strong partnerships Capella Space has developed with other US government agencies including the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, National Reconnaissance Organization (NRO), U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy and the U.S. Space Force.
(Source: Capella Space news release. Images from file)