Commercial Data Program (CDP)

NOAA’s Commercial Data Program (CDP) successfully engages with the commercial sector through pilots and acquisition of operational satellite data-as-a-service for commercial data to help improve weather forecasts and provide risk reduction to the overall observing system.

The program includes two lines of effort: Commercial Weather Data Pilot (CWDP) demonstrations of the quality and impact of commercial data on weather forecast models; and Commercial Data Purchase in support of operational weather forecasting.

In December 2024, NOAA released updated “Guidance for NOAA Commercial Data Buys,” which lays out the considerations, best practices, and guidelines by which NOAA programs and offices should consider when engaging with the commercial sector on commercial data buy opportunities from all sources that contribute to environmental intelligence. The guidance in the document is intended to ensure consistency across the agency when working with commercial data providers to maintain high fidelity of NOAA services.

Commercial Purchase: Radio Occultation Data Buy II (RODB-2, 2023-2028)

On-Ramping Opportunity

On May 1, 2024, NOAA posted a Request for Information (RFI) for the on-ramping of additional vendors to the RODB-2 multiple award vendor Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) pool.

View the RFI on SAM.Gov

Responses are due no later than June 5, 2024.

On March 23, 2023, NOAA announced the award of RODB-2 IDIQ contracts to PlanetiQ and to Spire Global Subsidiary. These contracts, with a total maximum value of $60M, have a five-year ordering period. Because the IDIQ contract duration is five years, while developing the RODB-2 RFP, NOAA’s CDP decided to annually pulse the commercial sector to see if new vendors have emerged that are capable of meeting RODB-2 requirements.

CDP’s RODB-2 requires the continuation of commercially sourced operational Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) radio occultation (RO) data to meet NOAA’s operational weather needs for neutral atmosphere and ionosphere data.

As new qualified vendors emerge over the next five years, CDP will add these vendors to the RODB-2 IDIQ to compete with Spire and PlanetiQ for delivery order (DO) contracts; the contract ceiling will remain in place.

Previous Activity

CWDP Round 5: Microwave Sounder (2024-)

Contract Awards

On September 17, 2024, NOAA awarded contracts totaling $4,266,400 to purchase Microwave Sounder (MWS) data from two commercial satellite companies in support of new Commercial Weather Data Pilot (CWDP) studies.

The first contract for $2,266,400 is to Tomorrow.io of Boston, MA. The second contract for $2,000,000 is to Orbital Micro Systems of Boulder, CO.

In these studies, NOAA will assess the quality, characteristics, and impacts of available commercial MWS observations collected from Low Earth Orbit (LEO) platforms. The primary MWS data products are all-weather temperature and moisture profiles; ancillary derived products include precipitation and select land & hydrology products.

The period of performance for the two CWDP studies is 12 months, broken up by three phases: Preparation (3 months); Data Delivery (6 months); and Evaluation (3 months).

NOAA will use the pilot study data in two ways. First, to investigate the utility of MWS products developed by commercial vendors. Second, to address the potential benefits to numerical weather prediction (NWP) by adding additional commercial capabilities over the current U.S. Government LEO backbone.

Upon completion and evaluation, successful CWDP studies may lead to sustained commercial data purchases to support NOAA’s research and operational forecasting endeavors. The CWDP awards are pursuant to the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017, as amended (Public Law 115-25) and the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (Public Law 118-42).

NOAA is pleased to take this next step in working with the commercial sector to obtain and analyze MWS products and data to meet NOAA’s critical weather forecasting mission for the Nation.

Previous Activity

General/Other Requests for Information

On December 20, 2023, NOAA issued a Request for Information (RFI) soliciting information on existing or planned commercial satellite environmental data and related capabilities that will be available in the FY2024 through FY2032 timeframe.

View RFI at SAM.gov

The due date for responses was extended to February 6, 2024. Responses will be used to inform potential Commercial Weather Data Pilot (CWDP) projects for terrestrial weather applications, as well as future pilots for space weather and other applications.

Previous Activity

CWDP Round 4: Ocean Surface Winds (2023-2024)

Contract Award

On Monday, September 18, 2023, NOAA awarded a Commercial Weather Data Pilot (CWDP) Ocean Surface Winds (OSW) Pilot contract to Spire Global Subsidiary, Inc.

View award information on SAM.gov

NOAA’s Commercial Data Program (CDP) supports CWDP studies to demonstrate the quality and impact of commercial data on NOAA’s weather forecast models. This contract award constitutes the next round of NOAA’s CWDP studies with a particular focus on ocean surface wind data. Read more

Previous Activity

Commercial Purchase: Radio Occultation Data Buy (RODB-1, 2020-2022)

CWDP Round 3: Space Weather Data (2022-2027)

Contract Awards to GeoOptics, PlanetiQ, & Spire

On July 14, 2022, NOAA awarded three Commercial Weather Data Pilot (CWDP) space weather contracts to GeoOptics Inc. (Pasadena, CA), Space Sciences and Engineering LLC, dba PlanetiQ (Golden, CO), and Spire Global Subsidiary, Inc (San Francisco, CA). These contract awards constitute the next round of NOAA’s CWDP studies with a particular focus on space weather data. Read more

Previous Activity

New Legislation

CWDP Round 2: Radio Occultation Data (2018-2019)

CWDP Round 1: Radio Occultation Data (2016-2018)