Harris recently delivered its proposal for a total, end-to-end solution for the ground segment of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R Series (GOES-R) program.

The ground segment provides receiving and processing satellite data, generating and distributing products from these data, and the command-and-control of operational satellites.

GOES satellites are a primary tool currently used by NOAA to detect and track hurricanes, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and other severe weather in the continental United States and the western hemisphere. The satellites provide the images and time-lapse sequences familiar to most Americans in television weather forecasts.

The next-generation GOES-R system will provide significantly improved image resolution and increase the rate of imagery coverage of earth surfaces from every 30 minutes to every 5 minutes - and every 30 seconds for severe weather events.

GOES-R advanced sensor technology will measure data such as solar activity, the charged particle environment, the Earth's magnetic field, temperature and moisture profiles, cloud properties, ozone estimates, and solar x-ray flux to support accurate weather forecasting, severe storm tracking, and meteorological research

The Harris team's service-based, open-architecture solution for GOES-R is a flexible, end-to-end system that accommodates the anticipated 40-times increase in data that will be ingested, processed and distributed to more than 10,000 direct users, while allowing for continuous improvement and future expansion as the GOES-R mission evolves.

The company is offering a low-risk, high-technology solution that has been prototyped and displayed in the GOES-R lab in Melbourne, Florida.

"The Harris team is proud to offer its innovative solution derived from five-decades of proven expertise in satellite data processing, command-and-control, and automated product generation and distribution," said Dan Pearson president of Harris Government Communications Systems.

"Our approach offers the best-value solution with the flexibility to meet the stringent requirements of this next-generation program for the life of the GOES-R mission. We look forward to working as a true partner with NOAA to deliver this vital capability to the nation."

"Severe weather conditions are one of the most persistent and destructive forces our country faces," said Frank Misciasci, Harris senior executive account manager.

"The Harris solution provides NOAA and other weather professionals the ability to decipher, predict and relay impending weather threats at an unprecedented speed and accuracy to first responders and the public at large. We're able to do this because we've been involved in the metrological-satellite ground system business since there was such a business."

Harris is bidding the GOES-R program as prime contractor and systems integrator. Members of the Harris GOES-R pursuit team include Atmospheric and Environmental Research Inc., Boeing Mission Systems, Carr Astronautics, Honeywell Technology Solutions, Wyle Information Systems LLC, and Applied Research and Engineering Sciences.

Award of the contract is expected in the spring of 2009, with the first launch of a GOES-R series satellite scheduled for 2015. Following development and deployment of the ground segment, Harris IT Services will provide operations and support services over the 10-year contract with the opportunity to provide operations and support services over the life of the GOES-R program, through 2029.

Harris is a recognized leader in satellite ground data processing and mission command-and-control systems. The company's ground data processing systems consist of complex suites of hardware and software that receive sensor data from satellites and process it into useable environmental parameters under stringent timelines - turning the data into useable information.

The company's command-and-control systems feature commercial-off-the-shelf design and high levels of flexibility. Designed for government and commercial applications, they support single-satellite missions as well as the largest and most complex satellite fleets deployed today.