Derrick Henry
General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems has secured a contract from the Space Systems Command to deliver a second satellite for the Electro-Optical Infrared Weather System program.
Under the agreement, General Atomics said Thursday it would develop, build, assemble, integrate and test the spacecraft bus and EO/IR payload required by the U.S. Space Force.
GA-EMS will also perform three years of operations services for each of the two satellites.
The company added that Atmospheric and Environmental Research will contribute weather product expertise to the project while Parsons Corporation will provide enterprise ground station command and control and operations support.
In a statement, GA-EMS President Scott Forney said the deal will deliver a second EWS satellite to support USSF efforts to extend EO/IR data collection capabilities.
“This contract is a testament to GA-EMS’ ability to design and deliver advanced EWS satellites that will provide timely, accurate weather data to support Department of Defense operations across all domains,” Forney added.
The award modifies a contract the company received in 2020 that saw GA-EMS leading payload integration work and on-orbit services for the program, which launched its first satellite in 2022.
The program enables the USSF to transition from its legacy on-orbit systems to a new generation of affordable, high-performance and small weather satellites, GA-EMS said.
