NASA has awarded a contract to Science Systems and Applications, Inc. of Lanham, Maryland, to conduct atmospheric sciences support services for the Science Directorate at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, as well as for the broader Earth science community.

The Science, Technology and Research Support Services (STARSS) III contract is a cost-plus-fixed-fee follow-on to a current contract for similar services, and was competitively awarded to a small business set-aside. The 60-month contract has a total value of $253.4 million.

The objective of the STARSS III contract is to improve scientific understanding of the Earth’s atmosphere and climate system, with future plans to expand our Earth atmospheric science expertise to investigate atmospheres of other planets.

The support provided in nine technical areas includes: helping NASA achieve its objectives through space flight measurements; instrument technology development; instruments on suborbital platforms; ground-based measurements; data analysis; maintaining stewardship of climate data records; and, advancement of applications for societal benefit and education outreach activities in areas where NASA has a strong scientific leadership role.

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http://www.nasa.gov