NOAA Buys $6.4M of Satellite Weather Data from Orbit

Spire Global and PlanetiQ win contracts to stream 10,000 daily atmospheric profiles into U.S. weather and space-weather models.

By The space-quantum Desk

NOAA has awarded $6.4 million in contracts to Spire Global and PlanetiQ to deliver radio occultation data for terrestrial and space weather forecasting — a stopgap deal that bridges two larger procurement vehicles. [1][2]

[1][2]

PlanetiQ, based in Golden, CO, receives $2,730,452 for 4,200 profiles and 500 total electron content tracks per day; that ionospheric data feeds directly into space weather prediction. [2] Both firms will deliver from September 18 through December 1, 2026 — 74 days — with this contract serving as a bridge between RODB-2 and the new Space-Based Environmental Monitoring IDIQ, a vehicle NOAA plans to establish later this year with a ceiling of $2.35 billion over 10 years. [1][2]

Radio occultation is a remote sensing technique that measures how radio waves bend and slow down as they pass through Earth's atmosphere, letting NOAA calculate temperature, pressure, and humidity for weather forecasting. [2] NOAA, NASA, the U.S. Air Force, and U.S. Navy will all ingest the data into their numerical weather prediction models and for space weather applications. [2]

The deal signals how agencies are threading commercial constellations into operational infrastructure — trading monolithic satellite programs for modular, contract-by-contract data streams that can scale as the market matures.

PlanetiQ announced Aug. S. weather services. [1]