WASHINGTON — Umbra Space secured a contract extension with the National Reconnaissance Office, the company announced Dec. 4. The California-based startup, which specializes in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite technology, has been working with the agency since 2022 under the Strategic Commercial Enhancements initiative.
The extension offers the company continued opportunities to demonstrate its technology and refine its offerings to meet government needs, said Joe Morrison, Umbra’s vice president of remote sensing.
The financial terms of the contract were not disclosed.
Unlike traditional optical imaging satellites, SAR can penetrate clouds and capture high-resolution images in all weather conditions, day or night. This makes the technology valuable for applications such as environmental monitoring, disaster response, maritime surveillance and intelligence gathering.
Interest in commercial SAR
Umbra currently operates five spacecraft, with more in production. The company is positioning itself in the government and commercial markets, Morrison noted, developing satellites for its own constellation and for international government clients.
Umbra is one of several SAR imaging companies the NRO selected in 2022 for study contracts. Companies’ performance under these cooperative agreements positions them to compete in an upcoming “Commercial Radar Layer” program, a multi-year initiative modeled after the agency’s Electro Optical Commercial Layer program, which awarded contracts to three firms in 2022.
The NRO, a U.S. intelligence agency responsible for designing, building and operating reconnaissance satellites, has a Commercial Systems Program Office that plays a pivotal role in integrating technology from private industry into national security operations.
“The beautiful thing about the NRO is that they’re incredibly meritocratic,” Morrison said. “They don’t reward bluster or marketing. They reward performance.”
Morrison credited the NRO’s expertise with helping commercial firms navigate the complex demands of government markets. “If you can go in humbly and ask, ‘What do you need?’ they will tell you exactly what they need to see.”
Under the NRO’s Strategic Commercial Enhancements initiative, Umbra is also working with the agency to provide radio frequency (RF) data collected by its SAR satellites that can be used to locate and track electronic emissions.
