Satellite Weather Data Awarded to Spire Global
NOAA has awarded a satellite weather data contract to Spire Global valued at up to $59 million. The award is part of NOAA’s Commercial Weather Data Program's Radio Occultation Data Buy II. The contract commenced on March 27, 2023 and will run until March 26, 2028.
"Armed with more accurate forecasts, we as a society are able to better prepare for and mitigate the impacts of extreme weather to protect our property, environment, and most importantly, lives.”
Chuck Cash, Vice President of Federal Sales, Spire.
Spire will provide NOAA with near-real-time RO data that consists of vertical profiles of atmospheric measurements, including pressure, humidity and temperature across all points of the globe, as well as ionospheric measurements. The satellite weather data will be used for NOAA’s operational weather forecasts, space weather models and climate research, among other applications.
Spire is the largest producer of RO data, powered by its fully deployed constellation of more than 100 satellites, and offers a vast portfolio of current weather, historical weather data, and weather forecast solutions. The Company is currently capable of providing 20,000 RO profiles per day and could achieve up to 100,000 profiles per day in as little as 18-24 months.
Satellite Weather Data Improves Climate Understanding
“Better predicting weather patterns and understanding our climate is one of the most important challenges — and opportunities — of our time,” said Chuck Cash, Vice President of Federal Sales, Spire. “Our long-standing relationship with NOAA demonstrates the value of assimilating commercial satellite data into weather models to improve forecasts. Armed with more accurate forecasts, we as a society are able to better prepare for and mitigate the impacts of extreme weather to protect our property, environment, and most importantly, lives.”
Spire was awarded a total of four NOAA contracts in FY22, valued at $23.6 million, and has provided data to the agency since 2016.
Last summer, Spire was awarded a 12-month contract extension from NASA to continue to deliver a comprehensive catalog of Earth observation data, associated metadata, and ancillary information from its constellation of 100+ multipurpose satellites.
(Source: Spire Global news release. Images from file)