Nolan’s Notes: Everyone Has Their Eye on India
Standard of Excellence: The Human Touch in an Automated World
The Government Circuit: Navigating New Trade Headwinds and New Partnerships
BAE Systems Selected to Build Spacecraft for NOAA’s Space Weather Next L1 Series
March 4, 2025 | BAE SystemsEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
BAE Systems has been selected to build the spacecraft bus for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) upcoming Space Weather Next L1 Series mission.
The satellite will serve as an eventual successor to the Space Weather Follow-On L1 (SWFO-L1) mission, which is scheduled to launch this year. The mission will provide valuable data to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) to help protect terrestrial and on-orbit assets from harmful space weather events.
Placed in orbit at the sun-Earth Lagrange Point 1 (L1), a gravitationally stable orbit point between the Earth and sun, L1 Series will continuously monitor the sun for space weather phenomena like coronal mass ejections, solar flares, and solar wind. The data collected will serve as an early detection system, assisting with forecasting the timing and intensity of geomagnetic storms and offering opportunities to avoid or mitigate space weather impacts.
“As an increasing number of satellites enter orbit each year, and our reliance on these technologies continues to grow, spacecraft like Space Weather Next L1 Series are crucial to ensure we’re doing everything possible to safeguard our most vulnerable infrastructure, both in space and here on Earth,” said Dr. Alberto Conti, vice president and general manager of Civil Space for BAE Systems Space & Mission Systems. “We’re proud to continue supporting NASA and NOAA in this important mission.”
“Space weather” refers to conditions in the space environment between Earth and the sun that may be damaging to human health or to technological systems deployed in space or on the ground. It is caused by activity on the sun, which can emit burns of radiation and charged particles that can disrupt communication systems, power grids, and the Global Positioning System (GPS); damage or destroy spacecraft in orbit; and expose astronauts to dangerous levels of radiation. L1 Series will host a suite of at least five different instruments, supplied by other mission partners, which will send back near-real-time information on potentially harmful space weather and allow stakeholders to prepare for power outages, protect vulnerable infrastructure, and help astronauts and spacecraft maneuver out of harm’s way.
In addition to developing the spacecraft bus, BAE Systems will lead spacecraft integration and environmental testing and will assist with launch support for the mission.
L1 Series is the latest heliophysics mission that BAE Systems is building for NASA and NOAA, including SWFO-L1, which will launch in 2025 on a similar mission. The company also built the spacecraft for NASA’s Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, which will provide the first detailed, continuous observations of the Earth’s exosphere and its response to solar activity. Carruthers will launch alongside SWFO-L1 later this year.
L1 Series is expected to launch in 2029.
Share on:
Testimonial
"In a year when every marketing dollar mattered, I chose to keep I-Connect007 in our 2025 plan. Their commitment to high-quality, insightful content aligns with Koh Young’s values and helps readers navigate a changing industry. "
Brent Fischthal - Koh YoungSuggested Items
Honeywell-Led Consortium Receives UK Government Funding to Revolutionize Aerospace Manufacturing
09/02/2025 | HoneywellA consortium led by Honeywell has received UK Government funding for a project that aims to revolutionize how critical aerospace technologies are manufactured in the UK through the use of AI and additive manufacturing.
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
08/29/2025 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007This week, we bring you Global Electronics Association’s Chris Mitchell’s government relations column on—you guessed it—trade deals. TTM is balancing its facilities between East and West. The Global Electronics Association released July numbers for North American PCB shipments, and the news is good. Meanwhile, the corresponding report for EMS might seem like bad news, but that’s misleading. Be sure to look deeper for the rest of the story. Finally, for a bit space-science palate cleansing, I’m sharing news of the latest launch of NASA’s X-37B.
Boeing-built X-37B Spaceplane Launches, Beginning Eighth Mission
08/26/2025 | BoeingThe Boeing-built X 37B Orbital Test Vehicle launched its eighth mission, lifting off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The vehicle is healthy on orbit and proceeding with standard checkout.
TI Semiconductors Enable Advanced Earth-observation Capabilities of ISRO’s First-of-its-kind NISAR Mission
08/25/2025 | Texas InstrumentsTexas Instruments (TI) semiconductors are enabling the radar imaging and scientific exploration payloads for the NASA-Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) synthetic aperture radar (NISAR) satellite, which was recently launched into orbit.
Rocket Lab Announces Expanded U.S. Investments for National Security Programs and Semiconductor Manufacturing
08/25/2025 | BUSINESS WIRERocket Lab Corporation, a global leader in launch services and space systems, announced it is boosting its U.S. investments to expand semiconductor manufacturing capacity and provide supply chain security for space-grade solar cells and electro-optical sensors for national security space missions.