Eric D. Colburn, PLS

Professional Land Surveyor News

Professional Land Surveyor News: GeoEye Receives U.S. Government Contract Award for New Web Mapping Service

GeoEye, Inc., announced this week that it has signed a modification to a contract with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) to provide Web mapping services under the NGA’s Rapid Delivery of Online GEOINT (RDOG) program. This contract modification was made so that GeoEye can provide for Rapid Delivery of High-Resolution Commercial Satellite Imagery to Department of Defense Users.

GeoEye reports that this Web hosting and dissemination contract modification is in addition to ongoing production work being done under the RDOG contract originally awarded in June 2009 and under GeoEye’s Service Level Agreement with the NGA.

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VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- A United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket was launched here at 11:51 a.m. Oct. 8. The Delta II was launched on behalf of Boeing Launch Services. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Andrew Lee)

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Vandenberg successfully launched a Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex late last week.

The rocket carried WorldView-2, a high-resolution, remote-sensing satellite, into polar orbit.

With confirmation of the payload’s delivery into orbit and signal acquisition, the launch was pronounced a success.

Col. David Buck, the 30th Space Wing commander, was the launch decision authority for this mission.

“There really is nothing quite as exciting as seeing one of these powerful little rockets jump off the pad,” Col Buck said. “I’m incredibly proud of this wing and its mission partners for the way they conquer the immense technical difficulties of space lift operations and make it look so easy.”

Once operational, WorldView-2 will join a constellation of satellites belonging to DigitalGlobe. It will produce high-resolution, world-imagery products and services for defense and intelligence, government, and commercial clients.

The Delta II is an expendable launch, medium-lift vehicle. First launched in 1989, the Delta II’s primary mission was to carry Air Force GPS satellites into orbit. Today, it is used to launch military, civil and commercial payloads into low-earth, polar, geosynchronous transfer and stationary orbits.

“The Delta II is one of my favorite rockets; I’ve been launching them since I was a lieutenant colonel,” Colonel Buck said. “I’m very confident whenever I am working with this rocket, but I am even more confident when I work with this team.”

Vandenberg is next scheduled to launch an Atlas V carrying a payload for the Defense Meterological Satellite Program on Oct. 18.

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U.S. AIR FORCE - Vandenberg Base