Northrop To Vie For GOES-R Contract

Northrop Grumman Corp. [NOC] will compete for the Geostationary Environmental Operational Satellite — Series R GOES-R contract.

Northrop submitted a proposal to NASA to design and develop the next generation of satellites that will continuously monitor the earth and its environment from a geostationary orbit.

The Northrop GOES-R proposal builds on its experience designing, developing and integrating research and operational environmental spacecraft and sensors for NASA and NOAA.

This includes the Aqua and Aura Earth Observing System (EOS) satellites and the next generation environmental satellite system, National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS).

The GOES-R space segment is being procured by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and will be operated by NOAA.

Northrop performed trade studies and risk reduction on GOES-R for the past four years under study contract and internal resources.

The GOES-R series represents a significant technological advancement over the earlier GOES spacecraft in terms of system availability, precision pointing, capacity and the quality and quantity of meteorological and environmental data. For example, one of the major instruments, the Advanced Baseline Imager, will produce higher precision images and output high fidelity data at a rate roughly 25 times greater than previous GOES generations.

Built by Northrop Grumman for NASA Goddard, Aqua was launched May 4, 2002. The second in NASA’s series of EOS spacecraft, Aqua is collecting data about the Earth’s water cycle, including evaporation from the oceans, water vapor in the atmosphere, clouds, precipitation, soil moisture, sea ice, land ice, and snow cover on the land and ice.

United Kingdom Gives Lockheed $15.5 Million Pact To Support Trident II D5 Ballistic Missiles

United Kingdom Gives Lockheed $15.5 Million Pact To Support Trident II D5 Ballistic Missiles

p>The U.S. Navy awarded Lockheed Martin Corp. [LMT] a one-year, $15.5-million contract for continued program management and engineering services for the United Kingdom Trident II D5 Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) program.

The Royal Navy Trident II D5 missiles, which are built by Lockheed, are deployed aboard British-built Vanguard-class Trident ballistic missile submarines.

Under this contract, Lockheed is providing program management and planning support to the Royal Navy, as well as technical support related to integration and operations for U.K. reentry systems, missiles and support systems. Spare parts also will be provided. Lockheed is performing work at facilities in the United States and the United Kingdom for this contract, which began April 1 and will conclude by March 31.

NASA Gives Space Station Water Contract To United Technologies Unit

If Water System Doesn’t Work, Hamilton Sundstrand Doesn’t Get Paid

NASA awarded a sole-source contract to Hamilton Sundstrand, a unit of United Technologies Corp. [UTX] for water services for the International Space Station.

Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International Inc., of Windsor Locks, Conn., received a firm fixed-price contract with a potential value of $65 million that extends through Sept. 30, 2014.

The company will provide equipment that uses the station’s excess carbon dioxide and hydrogen to produce water and methane. The methane will be vented into space, and the water will be fed into the station’s waste water system, where it will undergo treatment before it is used.

Under the contract, NASA will not buy hardware, but instead will purchase the water service. If the system does not work, NASA will not pay for it.

"This is a fundamental shift in the way we do business," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for Space Operations. "In the business arrangement we have negotiated for water production services, the contractor is responsible for all system development and performance. The only requirements we have imposed are those associated with safety and interfaces. This provides a procurement and technology test bed for future exploration systems, which need to operate in an environment far from Earth, where routine resupply is not feasible."

The equipment employs a chemical process known as a Sabatier reaction.

The process is named for French Nobel laureate and chemist Paul Sabatier, who discovered that hydrogen and carbon dioxide produce methane and water at elevated temperatures and pressures.

The Hamilton Sundstrand-provided hardware will be flown during shuttle mission STS-130, which is targeted for launch late next year. A checkout of the system is planned for May 2010. Hamilton Sundstrand will retain title to the hardware and ensure it meets NASA space station safety and interface requirements.

Water is used on the space station for a variety of purposes, including drinking, food preparation, oxygen generation, electronic equipment cooling and hygiene. About half of the station’s water needs are obtained through recycling. The rest of its water currently is transported by the space shuttle or supply ships, including the Russian Progress and European Automated Transfer Vehicle.

Hamilton Sundstrand provides a number of systems for the space station, including those that control electrical power and process water, waste and air. The company has been the prime contractor to NASA for astronaut spacesuits since 1981.