WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force awarded orbit-modeling software provider AGI a contract valued at $8.4 million for a subscription service for data from the company’s Commercial Space Operations Center, or ComSpOC, the Pentagon announced Sept. 29.
Exton, Pennsylvania-based AGI established the ComSpOC about two years ago in collaboration with other companies to provide a commercial alternative to the Air Force-led Joint Space Operations Center for data on satellite locations, orbits and potential on-orbit collisions. The virtual center relies on a network of ground-based optical and radio-frequency sensors, software and orbital data either publicly available from sources including the Air Force or voluntarily provided by commercial satellite operators.
The contract is AGI’s first with a U.S. government customer for ComSpOC services. AGI has announced one commercial contract for ComSpOC services, to support early orbital maneuvers and operations of a pair of Boeing-built all-electric telecommunications satellites that were launched in March.
According to the Pentagon announcement, work under the firm-fixed price, sole-source contract will be carried out at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado and will be completed by July 30, 2016.
AGI had yet to put out a statement on the contract a press time Oct. 2, but industry sources said the work likely is associated with the newly established Joint Interagency Coalition Space Operations Center. That center, a joint effort of the Air Force and intelligence community to simulate space warfighting scenarios, officially began operating Oct. 1.
AGI is also a key contractor on larger effort to upgrade the Joint Space Operations Center, which relies largely on government owned sensors on the ground and in space to provide space situational awareness.
