Printed from https://fiscalreceipts.com/program/1206422SF/ — built September 26, 2026. Every figure is citation-backed; see the page online for per-number provenance.
Weather System Follow-on
Watch this program
Budget figures
FY2026 award data is a partial year — USAspending reports awards on a rolling basis, and this corpus runs through 2026-09-04. why partial FY2026 data? →
Budget trajectory
| Fiscal year | Amount |
|---|---|
| FY24 | $72.7M |
| FY25 | $49.2M |
| FY26 | $38.5M |
All series figures: R-1 TOA · PB2026
Decade view
P-1/R-1 workbook TOA basis, shown compact in $B/$M (the workbook records USD thousands); each figure cites its own President's Budget edition
The vertical scale does not start at zero: the baseline sits just below this program’s smallest year, so a low point on this line is not a small amount. Read the shape for direction and the grid below for the figures.
● actuals (line) · ○ enacted · ◇ request — gaps are editions the program is absent from, never interpolated.
| Series | FY19 | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | FY26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Actuals | $0 | $0 | $79.8M | $66.1M | $47.1M | $72.7M | ||
| Enacted | – | $0 | $85.9M | $54.9M | $48.7M | $79.7M | $49.2M | |
| Request | – | – | $85.9M | $63.0M | $48.9M | $79.7M | $49.2M | $38.5M |
blank = series not published for this year; – = absent from that edition.
Asked vs spent: the PB2024 book requested $79.7M for FY2024; the PB2026 book reported $72.7M as actual total obligation authority — $7.07M below the request. 72.66 − 79.73 = -7.07 USD millions — the compact figures above are rounded for reading.
Program lineage
No predecessor/successor lineage was recorded for this program element — no FY-to-FY transfer into or out of this line was stated in the ingested J-books, and none was inferred from the program structure.
Description
Mission — Weather System Follow-on
Weather System Follow-on program 1206422SF consists of Space Situational Awareness Environmental Monitoring (SSAEM) Project 65A038 and Weather System Follow-on - Microwave (WSF-M) Project 65A039. SSAEM Project 65A038 is a non-ACAT, Class D technology demonstration project to support the international Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate 2 (COSMIC-2) mission. The SSAEM program provides the acquisition, development and launch/on-orbit support of 18 space/terrestrial weather sensors to COSMIC-2 partnership in coordination with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Taiwan Space Agency (TASA). COSMIC-2 launched six satellites in an equatorial, Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with 3 SSAEM sensors on each spacecraft in FY 2019. The sensors are the primary Tri-Global Navigation Satellite System (Tri-GNSS) Radio occultation System (TGRS), and the secondary Ion Velocity Meter (IVM) and Radio Frequency Beacon (RFB). The SSAEM sensors will address three distinct Joint Requirement Oversight Committee (JROC)-approved Category A weather capability gaps, specifically Gap #4 (Ionospheric Density), Gap #7 (Equatorial Ionospheric Scintillation) and Gap #12 (Electric Field), to provide ionospheric space meteorological data to improve forecast capabilities and improve warfighter navigation/communication capabilities. TGRS also provides atmospheric refractivity profiles that are important inputs to DoD operational numerical weather prediction models. The Weather System Follow-on - Microwave (WSF-M) Project 65A039 includes funds for the WSF-M system, the Compact Ocean Wind Vector Radiometer (COWVR) technology demonstration, and the Energetic Charged Particle (ECP) sensor development. Weather System Follow-on (WSF) is a Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) microwave imaging system developed and delivered by the United States Space Force's Space Systems Command (SSC). WSF is the next generation of space-based passive microwave sensing technology. It will provide U.S. and Allied warfighters with essential weather data, including the measurement of ocean surface wind speed and direction, ice thickness, snow depth, soil moisture, and local spacecraft energetic charged particle environment. The ocean surface wind speed measurement enables tropical cyclone intensity determination by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The data gathered by WSF will be provided to meteorologists in support of the generation of a wide variety of weather products necessary to conduct mission planning and operations globally. WSF is an Acquisition Category IB program comprised of two Space Vehicles (SV) and their associated command, control, and data dissemination network. Global environmental monitoring data is gathered, stored, and downlinked through the Satellite Control Network (SCN) and disseminated to Air Force and Navy weather centers. Additionally, data is broadcast real time by the satellite for utilization by heritage Direct Readout Terminals that use the data for local weather forecasting. WSF is a Major Defense Acquisition Program (MDAP) with the Space Force as the lead component. Founded on the Space-Based Environmental Monitoring (SBEM) Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) results, the WSF will be to enable: 1) Timely weather collection over broad oceans in support of maneuvering forces. 2) Space weather capabilities to characterize operational orbits, space situational awareness, and the ionosphere. Secondary investments may be supported to address weather gaps identified in the SBEM AoA and validated by the JROC. The Space Force will pursue prototyping of latest commercial industry capabilities for simplified designs to meet the SBEM Gap requirements. COWVR is an on-orbit demonstration project of the new COWVR technology to deliver Weather Gap #3, Ocean Surface Vector Winds (OSVW) and Gap #8, Tropical Cyclone Intensity (TCI). ECP supports the SBEM Weather Gap #11, Low Earth Orbit Energetic Charged Particle Characterization. To support this requirement, the ECP sensor will be integrated on the WSF-M satellites. Rapidly respond to implement system resiliency and situational awareness necessary to operate in the contested space domain. Activities may include, but are not limited to program office support, studies, technical analysis, experimentation, risk reduction, prototyping, and activities that may leverage commercial, U.S. Government partnership, and international opportunities to respond to existing and emerging adversarial threats with speed and agility. This program element may include necessary civilian pay expenses required to manage, execute, and deliver WSF for weapon system capability. The use of such program funds would be in addition to the civilian pay expenses budgeted in program elements 1206392SF and 1206398SF. This program is in Budget Activity 5, System Development and Demonstration (SDD) because it has passed Milestone B approval and is conducting engineering and manufacturing development tasks aimed at meeting validated requirements prior to full rate production.
Mission — SSA Environmental Monitoring
The Space Situational Awareness Environmental Monitoring (SSAEM) program is a non-ACAT, Class D technology demonstration project to support the international Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate 2 (COSMIC-2) mission. The SSAEM program provides the acquisition, development and launch/on-orbit support of 18 space/terrestrial weather sensors to COSMIC-2 partnership in coordination with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Taiwan Space Agency (TASA). COSMIC-2 launched six satellites in an equatorial, Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with 3 SSAEM sensors on each spacecraft in FY 2019. The sensors are the primary Tri-Global Navigation Satellite System (Tri-GNSS) Radio occultation System (TGRS), and the secondary Ion Velocity Meter (IVM) and Radio Frequency Beacon (RFB). The SSAEM sensors address three distinct Joint Requirement Oversight Committee (JROC)-approved Category A weather gaps, specifically Gap #4 (Ionospheric Density), Gap #7 (Equatorial Ionospheric Scintillation) and Gap #12 (Electric Field), to provide ionospheric space meteorological data to improve forecast capabilities and improve warfighter navigation/communication capabilities. TGRS also provides atmospheric refractivity profiles that are important inputs to DoD operational numerical weather prediction models. This program element may include necessary civilian pay expenses required to manage, execute, and deliver SSAEM for weapon system capability. The use of such program funds would be in addition to the civilian pay expenses budgeted in program elements 1206392SF and 1206398SF. The RFB ground station equipment was previously transferred to AFRL to continue development and potential fielding options for future ops capability. Incremental operational fixes and improvements to the TGRS sensor via a series of flight software/firmware uploads began in the months following launch, continue through the present and are expected to continue through FY 2026 at least. Design life has extended through FY 2033 due to system performance exceeding expectations.
Mission — WSF-M
The Weather System Follow-on - Microwave (WSF-M) Project 65A039 includes funds for the WSF-M system, the Compact Ocean Wind Vector Radiometer (COWVR) technology demonstration, and the Energetic Charged Particle (ECP) sensor development. Weather System Follow-on (WSF) is a Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) microwave imaging system developed and delivered by the United States Space Force's Space Systems Command (SSC). WSF is the next generation of space-based passive microwave sensing technology. It will provide U.S. and Allied warfighters with essential weather data, including the measurement of ocean surface wind speed and direction, ice thickness, snow depth, soil moisture, and local spacecraft energetic charged particle environment. The ocean surface wind speed measurement enables tropical cyclone intensity determination by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The data gathered by WSF will be provided to meteorologists in support of the generation of a wide variety of weather products necessary to conduct mission planning and operations globally. WSF is an Acquisition Category IB program comprised of two Space Vehicles (SV) and their associated command, control, and data dissemination network. Global environmental monitoring data is gathered, stored, and downlinked through the Satellite Control Network (SCN) and disseminated to Air Force and Navy weather centers. Additionally, data is broadcast real time by the satellite for utilization by heritage Direct Readout Terminals that use the data for local weather forecasting. WSF is a Major Defense Acquisition Program (MDAP) with the Space Force as the lead component. Founded on the Space-Based Environmental Monitoring (SBEM) Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) results, the WSF will be to enable: 1) Timely weather collection over broad oceans in support of maneuvering forces. 2) Space weather capabilities to characterize operational orbits, space situational awareness, and the ionosphere. Secondary investments may be supported to address weather gaps identified in the SBEM AoA and validated by the JROC. The Space Force will pursue prototyping of latest commercial industry capabilities for simplified designs to meet the SBEM Gap requirements. COWVR is an on-orbit demonstration project of the new COWVR technology to deliver Weather Gap #3, Ocean Surface Vector Winds (OSVW) and Gap #8, Tropical Cyclone Intensity (TCI). ECP supports the SBEM Weather Gap #11, Low Earth Orbit Energetic Charged Particle Characterization. To support this requirement, the ECP sensor will be integrated on the WSF-M satellites.
Justification
Accomplishments & Planned Programs (4)
Space Situational Awareness Environment Monitoring (SSAEM)
The SSAEM program provides the acquisition, development and launch/on-orbit support of 18 space/terrestrial weather sensors to COSMIC-2 partnership in coordination with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Taiwan Space Agency (TASA).
WSF Microwave Satellite (SV1-2)
Develop, build, integrate, and test the WSF Microwave (WSF-M) satellites, including bus, payloads, and ground upgrades to satisfy JROC-directed SBEM Capability gaps.
COWVR Tech Demo
The Compact Ocean Wind Vector Radiometer (COWVR) launch objective supports Category A Weather Requirements, as codified in JROC Memo 092-014, providing on-orbit technology demonstration of the new COWVR technology to deliver Weather Gap #3, Ocean Surface Vector Winds (OSVW) and Gap #8, Tropical Cyclone Intensity (TCI). This is a cooperative mission with NASA for integrating the sensor onto the International Space Station (ISS) as a weather technology demonstration project. The mission designation for the COWVR is Space Test Program Houston Mission #8 (STP-H8). Demonstrating COWVR technology in the space environment remains an important milestone for the microwave data weather mission.
ECP
Energetic Charged Particles (ECP) will support the SBEM Weather Gap 11 and address the Secretary of the Air Force (SECAF) policy which directed each Space Force Satellite Office to plan for ECP sensors on all pre-Milestone B satellite acquisitions. To support this requirement, the ECP sensor will be integrated on the WSF-M satellites.
Budget line items(workbook-cited)
P-1/R-1 workbook Total Obligation Authority basis (USD thousands) · PB2026.
Exhibit R-1
| Account | Org | Type | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space Force | F | FY24 Actuals | $72.7M |
| Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space Force | F | FY25 Enacted | $49.2M |
| Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space Force | F | FY25 Total | $49.2M |
| Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space Force | F | FY26 Disc. Request | $38.5M |
| Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Space Force | F | FY26 Total | $38.5M |
Budget Details(R-2/P-40 facts)
J-book detail basis (R-2/P-40, USD millions) · PB2026 — a different accounting basis from the P-1/R-1 workbook TOA above; where the two disagree, the reconciliation strip under Budget figures shows both.
Wider than this screen — swipe the table sideways for the remaining fiscal-year columns.
| Project | All Prior Years | FY24 Actuals | FY25 Total | FY26 Base | FY26 Request |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Program Element | $193.7M | $72.7M | $49.2M | $38.5M | $38.5M |
| 65A038: SSA Environmental Monitoring | $7.49M | $0 | $2.04M | $2.01M | $2.01M |
| 65A039: WSF-M | $186.3M | $72.7M | $47.2M | $36.5M | $36.5M |
Follow the dollar
Appropriation → program element → top high-confidence awards → recipient families → congressional districts.
Follow-the-dollar covers 312 of 1,938 programs — only high-confidence budget→award links are shown. why coverage is partial? →
The diagram illustrates the cited table below — amounts shown in the diagram are transaction sums per award (no citation chips); the per-district obligations in the table cite USAspending queries.
Related awards
Award linkage is shown for 32 of 200 profiled companies — high- and medium-confidence USAspending matches, each row labeled; medium is the weaker evidence. why partial award coverage? →
| Recipient | PIID | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| BAE SYSTEMS SPACE & MISSION SYSTEMS INC. | FA881018C0002 | high |
Contractor concentration
No concentration index is published for this line. This line's high-confidence links do not clear the floor for a published concentration index — at least 3 awards across 2 contractor families holding positive obligations, with positive net linked dollars. An index below that floor is a fact about the sample, not about the market. Whatever further links this line carries are medium-confidence, and what each medium evidence path does and does not establish is set out in the methodology. Both bases are in the downloadable warehouse.
Lobbying mentions
No Senate LDA lobbying filing in the tracked data mentions this program element by code or alias.
Oversight
GAO oversight of this program
GAO assessed Weather System Follow-On (WSF) in its June 2025 Weapon Systems Annual Assessment, as a Space Force MDAP program.
“The Space Force's two polar-orbiting WSF satellites are intended to contribute to a family of space-based environmental monitoring systems by providing six of 12 mission critical capabilities in support of military operations. WSF aims to conduct remote sensing of weather conditions, such as wind speed and direction at the ocean's surface, and to provide real-time data for use in mission planning and weather forecasting models. The WSF satellites and other capabilities will fulfill the coverage requirements currently supported by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program, which is part of the greater space-based environmental monitoring family of systems.”
GAO-25-107569, p. 183 — the assessment page in GAO’s 2025 report
Earlier editions of the same assessment: June 2024 · June 2023
GAO assessed Weather System Follow-On (WSF) in its June 2024 Weapon Systems Annual Assessment, as a Space Force MDAP program.
“The Space Force's two polar-orbiting WSF satellites are intended to contribute to a family of space-based environmental monitoring systems by providing three of 11 mission critical capabilities in support of military operations. WSF aims to conduct remote sensing of weather conditions, such as wind speed and direction at the ocean's surface, and to provide real-time data for use in weapon system planning and weather forecasting models. The family of space-based environmental monitoring systems replaces the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program.”
GAO-24-106831, p. 179 — the assessment page in GAO’s 2024 report
GAO assessed Weather System Follow-On (WSF) in its June 2023 Weapon Systems Annual Assessment, as a Space Force MDAP program.
“The Space Force's polar-orbiting WSF satellite is intended to contribute to a family of space-based environmental monitoring (SBEM) systems by providing three of 11 mission critical capabilities in support of military operations. WSF aims to conduct remote sensing of weather conditions, such as wind speed and direction at the ocean's surface, and to provide real-time data for use in weapon system planning and weather forecasting models. The family of SBEM systems replaces the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program.”
GAO-23-106059, p. 183 — the assessment page in GAO’s 2023 report
GAO assessed the program, not this budget line. Weather System Follow-on is one of the lines that funds it, and GAO’s work above says nothing about this line’s own figures. Which line each GAO item attaches to is a hand-ratified crosswalk — how it was checked.
Department-level designation (not specific to this program)
GAO lists 5 high-risk areas for DOD as a whole. That designation covers the department, not Weather System Follow-on. GAO's program-level work on this line is above. See the DOD oversight record.
Program dossier
No research dossier for this program — dossiers cover 50 of 1,938 programs, the largest fully J-book-detailed lines by FY2026 requested dollars. why no dossier here? →
Primary sources
Open any budget figure for its exact receipt. Verified line items lead with the highlighted government PDF; original spreadsheets download with their budget edition and exhibit in the filename.
Budget totals · TOA sources
FY2026 Department of Defense Budget: RDT&E Programs (R-1) · comptroller.war.gov
Exhibit R-1 · J804
Complete workbook · unchanged saved copy. Saves as PB2026_DoD_R-1_Research-Development-Test-Evaluation.xlsx.
FY2025 Department of Defense Budget: RDT&E Programs (R-1) · comptroller.war.gov
Exhibit R-1 · J785
Complete workbook · unchanged saved copy. Saves as PB2025_DoD_R-1_Research-Development-Test-Evaluation.xlsx.
FY2021 Department of Defense Budget: RDT&E Programs (R-1) · comptroller.war.gov
Exhibit R-1 · J832
Complete workbook · unchanged saved copy. Saves as PB2021_DoD_R-1_Research-Development-Test-Evaluation.xlsx.
FY2022 Department of Defense Budget: RDT&E Programs (R-1) · comptroller.war.gov
Exhibit R-1 · J798
Complete workbook · unchanged saved copy. Saves as PB2022_DoD_R-1_Research-Development-Test-Evaluation.xlsx.
FY2023 Department of Defense Budget: RDT&E Programs (R-1) · comptroller.war.gov
Exhibit R-1 · J761
Complete workbook · unchanged saved copy. Saves as PB2023_DoD_R-1_Research-Development-Test-Evaluation.xlsx.
FY2024 Department of Defense Budget: RDT&E Programs (R-1) · comptroller.war.gov
Exhibit R-1 · J751
Complete workbook · unchanged saved copy. Saves as PB2024_DoD_R-1_Research-Development-Test-Evaluation.xlsx.
Detailed budget justification
The related TOA spreadsheets above use a different accounting basis from R-2/P-40 detail. Their amounts are not assumed to match these detailed sources.
FY2026 Space Force Research and Development Test and Evaluation · www.saffm.hq.af.mil
PDF page 383