AMERICOM CHIRPS While Hosting U.S. Air Force

AGS — Satellite solutions provider AMERICOM Government Services (AGS) has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force to host an experimental sensor on board a commercial spacecraft. The three year, $65 million firm fixed price contract was signed on June 30th with the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) in Los Angeles, California. AGS will host the experimental sensor on board an SES AMERICOM spacecraft scheduled to launch in 2010 and operate over the United States. The program is known as the Commercially Hosted Infrared Payload (CHIRP) Flight Demonstration Program. The primary purpose of the CHIRP experiment is to test a new type of infrared sensor from geo-synchronous altitude. The passive infrared sensor will be integrated onto a commercial satellite so that it can be launched into orbit and the data can then be transmitted to the ground for analysis. In addition to hosting the experiment, AGS, Orbital, and SAIC will provide validation and assessment services to determine the utility of the sensor in terms of data, performance validation and interoperability. This experiment is designed to help the SMC reduce technology risk for the Third Generation Infrared Surveillance program earlier than what would be possible with a dedicated satellite.