NASA/Ames Research Center, JA:M/S 241-1, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000

M -- SUPPORT SERVICES FOR AIRBORNE REMOTE SENSING RESEARCH PROGRAM SOL RFP2-36880 DUE 033198 POC Barbara A. Drake, Contracting Officer, Phone (650) 604-3002, Fax (650) 604-4646, Email bdrake@mail.arc.nasa.gov WEB: Click here for the latest information about this notice, http://nais.nasa.gov/EPS/ARC/date.html#RFP2-36880. E-MAIL: Barbara A. Drake, bdrake@mail.arc.nasa.gov. NASA/ARC plans to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a service contract for the operation of its Airborne Sensor Facilities (ASF), both at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA and NASA-Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA. The contract that will be awarded from this solicitation will be included in the NASA Consolidated Contracting Initiative (CCI). As such, other NASA centers and government agencies may request work to be done under the contract. NASA Ames is designated by NASA Headquarters as the lead center for airborne sensor development which includes EOS simulator sensors as well as incipient new sensor technology, with particular emphasis on sensor automation and miniaturization. Both Facilities support the airborne remote sensing research and development program under the Earth Science Division which develops and utilizes digital and photographic imaging sensors and in-situ instrumentation flown onboard NASA, other government, and commercial aircraft, including ER-2, DC-8, remotely piloted vehicle, and conventional aircraft platforms. The ASF, consisting of five component laboratories, described below, provides flight sensor operations and engineering support, ground-based data processing and analysis, advanced systems development, sensor calibration, and real-time data telemetry and disaster response. Specific objectives include the incorporation of automation and artificial intelligence features into new sensor designs (smart sensors), remote sensor operation (tele-science) and real or near time data processing and data dissemination to the user community. (1) Sensor Operations Lab- Contractor is responsible for the maintenance, operation and enhancement of NASA suite of state-of-the-art airborne remote sensing instruments. This suite consists of multi- and hyper-spectral sensors and aerial camera systems, some of which are customized versions of the Daedalus AADS1268 or AADS1278 series of airborne line-scan devices, including the MODIS Airborne Simulator (MAS), the MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER), the Thematic Mapper Simulator (TMS), the Airborne Ocean Color Imager (AOCI), the Multi-spectral Atmospheric Mapping Sensor (MAMS), the Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS), and the NS001 Multispectral Scanner. Additional contractor responsibilities include maintenance of all associated electronic (analog and digital), optical, and mechanical subsystems of the above listed systems. Contractor shall provide resident support for the platform aircraft based at the NASA Dryden Flight Center for system/platform integration and payload preparation and check-out for quick turn around missions such as disaster assessments. Contractor shall provide, during remote deployments, payload preparation and pre-flight check-out and onboard expert operators as required. Contractor shall conform to all NASA aircraft safety standards in the performance of the Sensor Operations Lab work. (2) Data Processing Lab- Contractor responsibilities include providing post-flight engineering analysis, data reduction, archival and distribution of data generated by the above systems. The work requires Level 1-B data production for the MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator and mission documentation and EOS DAAC interface. Contractor also provides flight planning and mission coordination for large science data collection campaigns. Data processing systems are developed to enhance the data processing facilities. Contractor directs the activities of the Ames photo lab for the production of photographic products from the aerial camera systems and provides data entry of all photography into the imagery database. Additionally custom software are developed to accommodate new data types and processing requirements as they arise. (3) Sensor Calibration Lab- Contractor shall be required to conduct NIST traceable calibration and characterization of all Earth-viewing sensor systems in support of EOS investigations. Contractor shall coordinate and schedule calibration-related maintenance activities for all airborne sensor systems,provide accurate measurements of spectral, radiometric and spatial characteristics of all digital sensor systems, conduct calibration experiments to validate instruments under flight conditions and other maintenance and/ or operational activities as stated in the Statement of Work. (4) Systems Development Lab- Contractor requirements shall include the initiation of design modifications to existing sensor systems to enhance their capabilities or to accommodate special project requirements, ensure any new sensor is compatible with aircraft structural environmental, power and data distribution requirements as well as NASA aircraft safety standards, engaging in the design and fabrication of sensor and data systems, as directed by the COTR, incorporating new imaging technologies as they become available to the user communities, identify trends/requirements in the scientific remote sensing community and developing proof of concept designs that address specific needs. (5) Telemetry Systems Lab- Contractor operates the STARLink (Satellite to Aircraft and Return Link) Payload Operations Center (POC) ground station which uses a high bandwidth Ku band uplink from the NASA ER-2 aircraft to the TDRSS satellite system, to capture real-time image and science data telemetry. Lab is also responsible for the rapid processing and re-distribution of these data via wide area networks and the Internet. It includes custom hardware and software designed for the capture of high-speed data streams (>100 Mb/sec.) The POC will also be configured to receive direct downlink transmission from various airborne platforms. The performance period will be five years, including a one year base period and four, one-year each option periods. The provisions and clauses in the RFP are those in effect through FAC 97-03. The Government does not intend to acquire a commercial item using FAR Part 12. See Note 26. The SIC Code and Size Standard are 8711 and $2.5M, respectively. The DPAS rating for this procurement is DO-C9. The anticipated release date of RFP2-36880 is on or about April 1, 1998 with an anticipated proposal due date of on or about June 1, 1998. All qualified responsible sources may submit a proposal which shall be considered by the agency. An ombudsman has been appointed. See Internet Note "B". The solicitation and any documents related to this procurement will be available over the Internet. These documents will be in Microsoft Office Suite (Word 6.0, Excel 5.0, or PowerPoint 4.0) format and will reside on a World-Wide Web (WWW) server, which may be accessed using a WWW browser application. The WWW address, or URL of the NASA/ARC Business Opportunities page is http://procurement.nasa.gov/EPS/ARC/class.html. Prospective offerors shall notify this office of their intent to submit an offer. It is the offeror's responsibility to monitor the aforementioned Internet site for the release of the solicitation and amendments (if any). Potential offerors will be responsible for downloading their own copy of the solicitation and amendments (if any). Anyreferenced notes can be viewed at the following URL: http://genesis.gsfc.nasa.gov/nnotes.htm. (0066)

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