What’s next for Air Force weather satellites?

The U.S. military’s highest priority weather satellite, a spacecraft requested by U.S. Strategic Command to observe clouds and theaters of operations, is on hold after NASA rescinded the contract award. In September the Space Rapid Capabilities Office, working with the NASA Ames Research Center’s small spacecraft prototyping office, awarded Sierra Nevada Corp. a $119 million contract to develop a satellite to gather cloud and theater imagery until the service finds a long-term solution to fulfilling its weather requirements. In October, Space Systems Loral protested the award and NASA rescinded it. More

(Source: SpaceNews - Jan 10)