CONTACT:  Patricia Viets                 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                         11/18/97

A major step in the merger and streamlining of government weather satellite programs has been initiated with the installation of a new satellite control system in a Commerce Department facility, the department announced today.

"This installation represents a major milestone in the planned merger of two environmental satellite programs operated by the federal government -- the Defense Department's and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's," said James T. Mannen, director of the Integrated Program Office. "The elimination of separate systems is projected to save taxpayers more than $678 million through FY1999. This figure jumps to nearly $1.8 billion over the life of the program, when compared with the cost of continuing to acquire and operate separate systems."

The new system will be used to operate environmental satellites in the Defense Department's Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP). These satellites are currently operated by an Air Force Space Command squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.

Under a plan to combine the Defense Department's program with NOAA's polar-orbiting environmental satellite program, NOAA will be responsible for operating both systems. Installation of the new equipment is the first in a series of steps leading to combined operations from Suitland. NOAA is scheduled to begin operations of the DMSP satellites next summer.

The installation of the Integrated Polar Acquisition and Control Subsystem is currently taking place in Suitland. The equipment, developed by Integral Systems Incorporated, teamed with Harris Corporation and Lockheed Martin, recently passed its first major development test, and installation began.

NOAA currently operates two polar-orbiting environmental satellites and two geostationary satellites. Operation of the DMSP satellites will add two polar-orbiting satellites to NOAA's responsibility. Eventually, the combined polar system will consist of three polar-orbiting satellites -- two U.S. satellites and one European satellite. NOAA's geostationary constellation of two satellites will not be affected.

The next major phase in the convergence effort is the development and acquisition of a single National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite system (NPOESS) capable of meeting both civil and military requirements for space-based environmental data.

The NPOESS will become operational toward the latter half of the next decade, and will eventually replace the current systems operated by the Defense Department and NOAA. The convergence effort is a result of Vice President Gore's National Performance Review, known as Reinventing Government.