On July 31, 2026, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) awarded a Commercial Data Program (CDP) contract to buy data for a Wildfire Imagery Pilot in the amount of $2.51 million to Muon of Mountain View, California. The period of performance is August 3, 2026 to June 3, 2027.
“NOAA’s commercial data pilot projects demonstrate the quality and impact of data from our commercial partners, who are constantly innovating and developing new sensor technologies, data models and mission concepts,” said Taylor Jordan, NOAA assistant secretary of commerce for environmental observation and protection. “Leveraging commercial partnerships allows NOAA to maximize taxpayer dollars to improve our mission of protecting lives, property and safeguarding the national economy.”
Under this Wildfire Imagery Pilot, Muon will supply multispectral infrared observation data collected on-orbit from one or more satellites. The data will be used by NOAA for wildfire detection, characterization, monitoring and mapping. NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) CDP, in collaboration with NOAA’s Wildland Fire Team, will evaluate and demonstrate the quality and impact of the commercially-purchased imagery on modernizing fire warnings and assessing infrared-based fire detection performance.
NESDIS CDP will use these wildfire observations to generate fire detection and characterization intelligence and to assess the value of the commercial wildfire observations within an integrated data and application framework. NESDIS CDP will focus on how the data can be used to protect life and property. Successful studies subsequently may lead to sustained commercial data purchases of this type to supplement government owned and operated satellites supporting NOAA’s operational mission.
NESDIS’s authority to manage CDP is pursuant to the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017. This statute directs NOAA to assess, use, and where appropriate, procure commercial weather and space weather data to enhance forecasting capabilities. Appropriated funds specified for the CDP were used to undertake this work.