Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)
Noblis initiated support of GOES in 1984 with the development of ground system requirements for operations of the new generation GOES-IM instruments. Continuing with the GOES-N satellite, the next satellite scheduled for launch, Noblis conducted analyses to assess the impact to NOAA's operations and to other users of the radio spectrum. In the GOES program, the next major changes will occur with the launch of the GOES-R satellite. GOES-R will have state-of-the-art instruments that—along with technology advancements in processing—will generate environmental and climate data six times faster and at finer spatial resolutions than today's systems. It will also require state-of-the-art communication links to transport that information. Noblis supported the sizing of the ground system processing and communications links for the enlarged science data stream and products. Noblis helped create the technical requirements for all communications links on the GOES-R satellite series, using lessons learned from the current GOES-N series communications tests, incorporating known and projected advances in technology. Noblis also began exploring Internet-based technologies to distribute the GOES-R data.
Polar-Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite (POES)
Noblis began support of the NOAA polar-orbiting satellites in 1984 with the development of requirements for the telemetry and command system portion of the ground system. We later helped develop requirements for the automated scheduling and handling of simultaneous acquisition and data downloads of multiple satellites at a single ground station. Noblis also assisted NOAA in achieving launch readiness for the NOAA KLM series of satellites and supported NESDIS in its ongoing management of the polar data product suite.
National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS)
A Presidential Decision Directive signed in 1994 established a single, converged, operational polar-orbiting environmental satellite system, intended to reduce the duplication of those currently operated by NOAA and the U.S. military, designated the NPOESS. One example of how our work supports the advancement of the NPOESS science and technology is NOAA's NPOESS Data Exploitation (NDE) Project. NDE will provide cutting-edge geophysical data to researchers, scientists, and environmental and climate forecasters worldwide. Our work ensures that users will continue to receive the mission-critical environmental products while also taking advantage of higher spectral and spatial resolution from the NPOESS instrument data, a 1200-fold increase in data volume over the current POES system. Our work in architecture and infrastructure planning supports improved polar data processing system management, the integrity of the design, and conformity to information technology best practices and government standards. Noblis' work on new state-of-the-art sensors includes (1) developing the specifications for these sensors, (2) evaluating their designs for requirements compliance and soundness, (3) tracking and evaluating development progress against engineering standards, and (4) developing plans for emerging technologies. We also provide engineering support for the NPOESS ground segment, including evaluating the design of Command, Control, and Communications and supporting the Flight Vehicle Simulator, which provides high-fidelity simulations of the on-orbit spacecraft and sensors.
Metop
In preparation for the POES and Meteorological Operation (Metop) Integrated Joint Polar System cooperative satellite constellation with the EUMETSAT, we assisted NOAA in enhancing its communications ground system to be able to download Metop data and incorporate it into the polar products suite.
DMSP
In preparation for the NPOESS era of joint DOD and civilian meteorological monitoring missions on common spacecraft, Defense Meteorological Satellite Program spacecraft operations was collocated with NOAA POES operations and operated by NOAA. Noblis assisted NOAA in preparing for this added mission by developing a NOAA operational staffing plan and also by developing the requirements for telemetry and command equipment compatible with the POES operation. We continue to assist NOAA in DMSP operations by supporting failover exercises to DOD backup facilities.
Landsat
The Landsat program is a collaborative effort of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); USGS focuses on acquiring and assimilating land remote sensing data, while NASA’s role is to ensure the continuity of data through next-generation technology. For almost 30 years, Noblis has been involved in various advisory roles with the Landsat program, guiding the steady improvement in land remote sensing observational capabilities within that series of satellite missions working for Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Stennis Space Center (SSC), NASA Headquarters, and the USGS. We have conducted and analyzed Landsat data user surveys for both SSC and the USGS. We also performed costing and financial analyses for various Landsat program configurations comparing data-buy, design-to-build, and stand-alone satellite development life cycle costs. In addition, we supported the study team commissioned by the Executive Office of the President to analyze various options for acquiring Landsat-like data in the event of an existing Landsat satellite failure prior to launch of the next-generation Landsat satellite.
Land Remote Sensing. The USGS Land Remote Sensing (LRS) Program's mission is to provide and encourage the use of historical, current, and future remotely sensed data and derived scientific information for a variety of applications in order to accomplish the following:
- Protect and enhance the quality of life for U.S. citizens
- Facilitate monitoring, scientific description, and understanding of the Earth and its natural and human-induced processes
- Minimize loss of life and property from natural disasters
- Manage water, biological, energy, and mineral resources
The LRS Program provides data products and services to scientists, engineers, resource managers, policy makers, and other users in the United States and around the world. The primary focus of Landsat centers on mapping the environmental conditions that relate to land cover, land use, and natural resources. Noblis has worked with the USGS to better understand the utility of Landsat data as well as the benefits of the Land Remote Sensing Program. Noblis identified the wide variety of Landsat data uses, the distributors of Landsat data, the benefits of Landsat data and products both domestically and internationally, and the importance of a continued Landsat program.
Supporting NASA’s Commitment to Data Continuity. We worked with NASA to explore alternatives for maintaining continuity of Landsat equivalent data, from continuing traditional free flyer satellite with the Landsat instrument, to adding the Landsat instrument payload to other mission satellites such as NPOESS. Noblis worked on a range of satellite technologies under contract to the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) to make satellites more autonomous and quicker to respond to transient phenomena. Our work on the Earth Observing satellites such as EO-1, Terra, and Landsat, combined with our involvement in setting up the GSFC Mission Autonomy Lab has resulted in implementation of numerous advanced tools and techniques both in ground elements and on-orbit within the flight element to improve the scheduling and capture of high-value scientific data. The response time from identification of an event to new tasking of the on-orbit assets has been drastically reduced. Advanced techniques for combining data from different platforms have been perfected and links between operational sensor platforms and predictive models have been established. Noblis also performed specialized analyses to identify and acquire Land Cover/Land Use data from various satellites that will compensate for the missing data from the aging Landsat fleet.
EOS
Our work on the Earth Observing Systems (EOS) program at NASA Headquarters and GSFC ranged from definition of high-level system requirements and operational concepts to project-level risk analyses, test planning, interface definition, and operational readiness preparation. We also supported advanced automation implementations for the Terra, Aqua, and Aura satellites.