WASHINGTON — The Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center has awarded the Aerospace Corp. a $1.08 billion modification to a previously awarded contract for systems engineering and integration support for national security space programs.

The contract award was announced Sept. 17 but no funds are being obligated at the time of the award. The contract will be supported with fiscal year 2020 research and development funds that have not yet been appropriated by Congress.

This contract modification exercises option year 1 for fiscal year 2020 services being procured under a multiple year contract. The total cumulative value of the contract is $2.1 billion.

An Aerospace spokeswoman said the contract covers work for “many customer organizations across national security space, including the Air Force, intelligence community, and the Missile Defense Agency. The breadth of the contract also supports the Air Force’s newly formed Space Rapid Capabilities Office and the Defense Department’s Space Development Agency. We are partnering with our customers to deliver speed, resilience, and innovation in the face of growing threats in space, while also connecting programs and capabilities across the enterprise.”

The Aerospace Corp., founded in 1960, is a nonprofit corporation that operates a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC). It has approximately 4,000 employees in major locations in El Segundo, Calif., Albuquerque, N.M., Colorado Springs, Colo., and the Washington, D.C. region.

The company provides technical guidance and advice on all aspects of space missions to military, civil, and commercial customers. It also works with the Air Force and other government organizations to identify emerging technologies from the commercial space sector that could apply to military or civilian space programs.

Sandra Erwin writes about military space programs, policy, technology and the industry that supports this sector. She has covered the military, the Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for nearly two decades as editor of NDIA’s National Defense...