Community Announcement

Space Weather Commercial Observations Demonstration

Following the NASA Ignition event earlier this year and the release of NASA SMD’s Science as a Service (SaaS) RFI, NASA’s Heliophysics Division completed a thorough review of the responses. This review highlighted many themes including:

1. Demonstration pathways and validation alongside rapid iteration;
2. Productization;
3. Evolving business models such as data-as-a-service and platform-as-a-service;
4. Advancing partnerships and improving the community ecosystem through co-funded pilots, coordination with academic and research institutes, and hosted workshops and working group to nurture partnership models; and
5. Implementation of scalable and sustainable program elements that utilize milestone funding structures, provide a clear pathway from demonstration to operational service, and ensure open data policies with clear IP frameworks. 

These themes reinforced on-going program planning within the Space Weather Program and accelerated the development of the Space Weather Commercial Observations Demonstration program element.  

On October 14, 2026, we released the Community Announcement for this effort to share the planning strategy, program model, and path forward to demonstration funding. 

The goal of this next phase is to foster a collaborative dialogue with industry and the research community, allowing stakeholder feedback to inform the development of a mature and clearly articulated RFP. Through this process, NASA seeks to identify and address potential concerns, risks, and implementation challenges early, ensuring that the solicitation is structured to maximize participation, encourage innovative solutions, and minimize unnecessary barriers to execution. 

If you would like to participate in a future information gathering session, please complete this short form: https://forms.gle/cvTGh82g4JW6JyUR8