SPECIAL NOTICE
16 -- NASA Gulfstream GV Synthetic Aperture Radar Request for Information (RFI) - RFI Figures
- Notice Date
- 11/30/2017
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 336413
— Other Aircraft Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing
- Contracting Office
- NASA/Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, Mail Code: BR, Houston, Texas, 77058-3696, United States
- ZIP Code
- 77058-3696
- Solicitation Number
- 80JSC018GVSAR
- Archive Date
- 2/23/2018
- Point of Contact
- Audrey C. Montgomery, Phone: 2817927510, Portia Simone Keyes, Phone: 2814833962
- E-Mail Address
-
audrey.c.montgomery@nasa.gov, portia.s.keyes@nasa.gov
(audrey.c.montgomery@nasa.gov, portia.s.keyes@nasa.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Figure 3: Antenna Orientation Figure 2: Antenna Mechanical Outline Figure 1: NASA JSC Gulfstream G-III Aircraft with UAVSAR Pod Installed 1.0 Synopsis The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is soliciting industry feedback and potential sources to install synthetic aperture radar (SAR) antennas on its Gulfstream GV aircraft. Currently, the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) operates three different SAR antennas (P-, L-, and Ka-band frequencies) that are installed in specially designed pods mounted underneath Gulfstream G-III aircraft as part of the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) program (figure 1). The UAVSAR program flies approximately 500 flight hours annually around the globe achieving numerous remote sensing science objectives including measuring glacier topography, quantifying soil moisture content, measuring land mass movement along tectonic fault lines, and more. The current UAVSAR pods house the radar, the Inertial Navigation Unit (INU), and the associated radar electronics. With the acquisition of the Gulfstream GV aircraft, NASA JSC and JPL are looking to implement a Next Generation (NextGen) concept on the GV to capitalize on the increased range, speed, and size of the aircraft to provide a more capable platform to capture more data at less cost. Given the miniaturization of electronics and increased cabin size, the radar electronics can be packaged into equipment racks that are mounted to seat track inside the cabin. With the radar electronics mounted inside the aircraft, the large UAVSAR pod would no longer be required potentially resulting in an antenna installation that minimizes drag and the associated aircraft range reduction. In addition, with the increase in fuselage length from the G-III to the GV, the potential exists to install two SAR antennas on the aircraft to permit simultaneous, multi-frequency data collection over the same swath of the ground. This capability is difficult to achieve with the current UAVSAR pods as it requires the maintenance and mission schedules of two G-III aircraft to align. NASA JSC and JPL intend to complete, in house, all of the design, analysis, fabrication, modification, and installation of the radar equipment racks. The purpose of this RFI is to solicit industry feedback and potential sources as it relates to the design, analysis, and aircraft modification to install the UAVASR antennas on the aircraft. Given that the UAVSAR NextGen concept is in the nascent planning stages, no formal statement of work has been developed. However, high level requirements and technical information for the desired installation of the antenna/radome assemblies are provided in Section 2.0. 2.0 UAVSAR NextGen Program Draft Requirements and Technical Information 1) Two SAR antenna/radome assemblies (P-, L-band) shall be installed on the aircraft. a. A mechanical outline of the antenna/radome assembly is provided in figure 2. b. The antenna weighs approximately 100 lbs. 2) The two SAR antenna/radome assemblies shall be installed on the aircraft oriented at a downward, port looking angle at a 40 to 50 degree angle from nadir as shown in figure 3 - either fuselage mounted or wing mounted. 3) The two SAR antenna/radome assemblies shall be installed with adequate ground clearance in accordance with MIL-STD-1289D, Section 4.3.5C (3" flat tire/flat strut). 4) An LN-251 Advanced INS/GPS shall be installed and collocated with each SAR antenna, see Appendix A. 5) The two SAR antenna/radome assemblies shall be designed to be removable from the aircraft. 6) With the two SAR antenna/radome assemblies removed from the aircraft, there shall be minimal permanent changes from the basic GV outer mold line. 7) NASA JSC and JPL shall provide all electrical cables and connections from the aircraft to the antenna. 3.0 RFI Questions In an effort to help NASA develop a project plan and to determine the scope of the effort required to complete the design, analysis, and installation of the two SAR antennas, please respond to the following questions. 1) Provide examples, if any, of existing antenna/radome/fuselage pod designs completed on Gulfstream aircraft via sketches, drawings, or photographs. Comment on the process by which you may adapt these existing designs to meet the requirements in Section 2.0. Also, provide details and comments on how the relocation of existing aircraft antennas or systems were completed for these existing designs on Gulfstream aircraft. 2) Provide examples, if any, of existing antenna/radome/fuselage pod designs completed on aircraft other than Gulfstreams via sketches, drawings, or photographs. Comment on the process by which you may adapt these existing designs to meet the requirements in Section 2.0. Provide points of contact for these efforts. 3) The GV owned by the National Science Foundation / National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF/NCAR) has mounting provisions for six hard points (three each wing) each with a maximum static load of 1,500 pounds. a. Comment on the viability of the approach of designing and installing a low-profile SAR pod that would provide both nadir and 40 to 50 degree from nadir look angles. b. Comment on the viability of reusing the existing SAR pod shown in Figure 1. The existing SAR pod is approximately 30" in diameter, 130" long, and weighs up to 1,000 lb. c. [Desired, but not required] Conceptually contrast a wing-mounted approach with a fuselage mounted approach in terms of level of effort, cost, and schedule for design, analysis, and modification. 4) In addition to standard structural, aerodynamic, and stability analyses that would normally be completed for the installation of large items protruding from the aircraft's outer mold line, are there other analyses that you would complete to verify airworthiness of the aircraft, e.g understanding the impact of vortices shed from structure on flight controls and the engines, impacts to the altimetry system, etc.? 5) [Desired, but not required] Provide a general layout sketch of your company's preferred approach(es) for the layout and installation of the SAR antennas on NASA's GV aircraft to meet the requirements in Section 2.0. 6) Provide a ROM cost estimate for the design and analysis associated with the installation of the antennas per the requirements in Section 2.0 assuming the certification of the design is to be completed via a Designated Engineering Representative approval of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) form 8110. 4.0 Company Specific Information Responses shall include the following: 1) Name and address of firm and Point of Contact information. 2) Size of business. 3) Average annual revenue for past three years. 4) Number of employees. 5) Whether the firm is a Large, SB, SDB, HUBZone, WOSB, VOSB, SDVOSB, HBCU/MI and/or 8a. 6) Number of years in business. 7) Affiliate information: parent company, joint venture partners and potential teaming partners. 5.0 Response Due Date All responses shall be received no later than 8 FEB 2018. All responses shall be submitted electronically via e-mail to audrey.c.montgomery@nasa.gov. Please limit your response to no more than fifteen pages. Any questions shall be sent to audrey.c.montgomery@nasa.gov no later than 15 JAN 2018. 6.0 Disclaimer This RFI is for information and planning purposes and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government nor will the Government pay for information solicited. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. The Government is under no obligation to issue a solicitation or to award any contract on the basis of this RFI. The Government intends to review the responses submitted by industry. No evaluation letters and/or results will be issued to the respondents. The data will not be shared outside the Government, but may be used to develop future requirements, refine requirements, and/or develop the best approach for any contract strategy. Please do not submit proprietary information. Data that is marked "proprietary" will not be reviewed. NASA Clause 1852.215-84, Ombudsman, is applicable. The Center Ombudsman for this acquisition can be found at http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/pub/pub_library/Omb.html. No solicitation exists; therefore, do not request a copy of the solicitation. If a solicitation is released it will be synopsized in FedBizOpps. It is the potential Offeror's responsibility to monitor these sites for the release of any solicitation or synopsis.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/notices/197ad688f4d6da3f3c3d561f70dca0ae)
- Record
- SN04752671-W 20171202/171130231306-197ad688f4d6da3f3c3d561f70dca0ae (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |