DWS - Defense Weather Satellite

After the failed combined agencies effort with the NPOESS weather satellite program the Department of Defense in early August 2010 approved through an ADM [Acquisition Decision Memorandum] that authorized the U. S Air Force to proceed with the development of a new weather satellite (DWS) Defense Weather Satellite to meet US military requirements. This is a separate program from the USAF, NOAA and NASA requirements incorporated in the NPOESS satellite effort. It was ordered separated by the White House, Office of Science & Technology Policy decision.

Defense Weather Satellite System was a DOD program intended to continue providing weather observations from the morning orbit following NPOESS cancellation; started in 2010 and cancelled in fiscal year 2012 because the program was considered early-to-need with unsustainable costs.

Following the cancellation of the Defense Weather Satellite System, DOD conducted follow-on program activities. In 2012, the Air Force analyzed almost 250 weather data collection parameters, or characteristics, from a 2009 initial capabilities document and determined that about 100 parameters required space-based sensing.

The Air Force then organized those parameters into three categories based on priority and ultimately identified12 potential gaps in capability that were mission critical, insufficiently met by existing and planned sources, and required space-based sensing capability. Officials representing the military services and the intelligence community jointly prioritized these 12 capabilities, which subsequently formed the list of capabilities that were to be assessed in the AOA.