Raytheon [RTN] recently said its Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) Common Ground System achieved a major milestone on the road to NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) launch with the successful completion of the NPP Compatibility Test 4 this August, the last major comprehensive test prior to the scheduled October launch.
The test consisted of 288 hours of continuous mission-like operations exercising the flow of data from Svalbard, Norway, through the Raytheon-developed Command, Control & Communications Segment and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Air Force Weather Agency data processing segments, called IDPSs, a company statement said.
“The NPP mission was designed to provide flight experience and assess risk for Joint Polar Satellite System instruments, as well as the associated ground system, and climate data continuity between the NASA Earth Observation System missions and the first JPSS launch. However, because of recent funding reductions, NPP data will be used in operational forecasting models,” said Bill Sullivan, program director for Raytheon Intelligence and Information Systems’ JPSS Common Ground System (CGS). “We placed a significant load on the systems, which performed with minimal issues during the duration of the test, giving us increased confidence in the NPP mission.”
The JPSS Common Ground System, which was developed by Raytheon’s Intelligence and Information Systems business and fielded in 2008, is planned to support the Defense Weather Satellite System. The CGS also supports Europe’s MetOp satellite and is scheduled on other future international polar-orbiting missions such as Japan’s GCOM satellite.