NASA Taps Intuitive Machines to Build Cloud-Studying Satellite
The company says NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory selected its spacecraft platform for FALCON-RADAR, a mission to study clouds and light precipitation. Launch is targeted no earlier than 2029.
Intuitive Machines says NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has selected the Houston-based company to provide the spacecraft platform and system-level integration for FALCON-RADAR, an Earth-science mission designed to study clouds and convection from orbit.
The company announced the selection Tuesday. The satellite will use its IM 300 spacecraft bus, the structure and systems that support the scientific instrument, and is targeted for launch no earlier than 2029.
FALCON-RADAR will carry a W-band cloud-profiling Doppler radar to observe light precipitation and small-scale cloud movements. It is designed to operate in a polar, sun-synchronous orbit, allowing it to study cloud processes from space.
The mission's measurements are intended to help scientists understand the processes behind rain and snow near Earth's surface. Combined with water-vapor and aerosol data from other missions, the radar observations would provide more context about cloud formation and convection.
Intuitive Machines said the spacecraft is being developed alongside EAGLE-VSWIR, another NASA mission using its platform. The company described FALCON-RADAR as its third award supporting NASA Earth-science work in six months, following EAGLE-VSWIR and EDGE.
The announcement did not disclose the award's financial value. The selection and mission details were reported in the company's release; the launch timing remains a target.