House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Ranking Member Frank Lucas released a statement today praising the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for significantly reducing expenses in a key satellite observation program. The data, released on June 18, showed a decrease of $735 million for the program’s life-cycle costs.
“I want to applaud NOAA, NESDIS, and the JPSS Program Office for their tremendous work to deliver critical long-term weather and climate observations. I also want to thank Dr. Neil Jacobs for his leadership during this time. Not only are Dr. Jacobs and NOAA producing high-quality data and forecasts, but they are also doing it in a cost-effective manner and saving taxpayers $735 million dollars. With an above-average Atlantic hurricane season projected this year, I am thankful NOAA has world-class satellites providing data for their models.”
Background:
NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) announced that the Polar Follow-On (PFO) and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite R Series (GOES) programs updated their life cycle costs for Fiscal Year 2016 through Fiscal Year 2038.
The PFO program’s new life cycle cost is $6,837 million, a decrease of $735 million, or 9.7%, from the previous projections in December of 2016. This is a result of efficient program management, lower procurement costs, and improved instrument development and testing.
Following the successful launch and operation of JPSS-1 in November 2017, NOAA continues to meet strategic deadlines and remains on track in the acquisition and development of the three remaining satellites in this series. Additionally, with GOES-16 and GOES-17 in orbit and meeting mission criteria, this year marks the first time their data is being used in NOAA’s Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting model.