New Antennae for U.S. Weather Satellites to Rise in Antractica
AURORA, CO, April 17, 2007 - Satnews Daily - Two National Polar-orbiting Operational Environment Satellite System (NPOESS) Safety Net data-receipt antennae vital to better weather forecasting in the USA will soon rise at the McMurdo Bay research station in Antarctica.
Precision placement of the antennae, or receptor sites, will begin during the 2007-2008 Southern Hemisphere summer. NPOESS will monitor global environmental conditions and collect and disseminate data related to weather, atmosphere, oceans, land and near-space environment. SafetyNet, a major feature of the NPOESS ground system, is a network of 15 data-receipt antennae sites and fiber optic communications around the world.
SafetyNet will provide the time-critical NPOESS data to civil, military and science users in fewer than 30 minutes, compared to current data delivery for U.S. polar-orbiting weather satellite systems, which requires more than two hours. The optimum for weather forecasting is to have the most minimal data delivery time possible, increasing the ability to forecast weather in a more timely and accurate manner.
Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) recently received approval of its environmental assessment from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for the precision placement of the two antennae. Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor and has overall responsibility for the program development effort. Raytheon Intelligence and Information Systems (Raytheon IIS) will be responsible for the Raytheon end of the project and is part of the Northrop Grumman Corporation-NPOESS team.
"NPOESS data is vital for future weather analysis and forecasting to support military operations, civil applications and scientific research," said Mike Mader, vice president and NPOESS program lead for Raytheon Company. "The NSF approval of this environmental assessment culminates two years of Raytheon and government efforts to secure key worldwide NPOESS receptor sites and is further evidence that collaborations between the NPOESS Integrated Program Office, NSF and the Northrop Grumman-Raytheon team work well."
Raytheon IIS is a provider of information and intelligence solutions to the government. It has annual revenues of some $2.6 billion and employs more than 8,000 engineering and technical professionals worldwide.
