NGA awards $335 million contract for Map of the World project

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has hired BAE Systems to help develop its intelligence products, particular in support of the agency’s Map of the World project, according to an announcement from the company. 

NGA awarded BAE a contract worth a maximum of $335 million for help in developing the collection, maintenance and utilization of geospatial intelligence data and products. The MoW project is expected to serve as the backbone for the agency’s intelligence analysis and collection efforts, and represents the agency’s move from static maps to dynamic ones.

Expected to be finished by 2020, the project would eventually allow NGA’s partners and customers to visualize and access integrated intelligence information relative to geographic features of the planet, according to a strategy document released by the agency.

For example, future intelligence analysts would be able to use the program to find multi-source intelligence reporting and analysis, including satellite imagery, maritime and air safety data and other types of geospatial information, reports sister publication FCW. The project is envisioned to use big-data analytics to assess social media data and other sources in order to highlight objects of interest.

MoW would operate as the intelligence community’s object-based production environment for integrating and present information. An online Web portal, known as the Globe, would allow NGA to share the project with other agencies.

BAE Systems will provide its expertise to manage big data and to develop data sourcing for the agency.

“Our GEOINT experts will be exploring new sources of data, including commodity data, open source intelligence, and NGA archive data to deliver new products in line with the agency’s changing mission focus,” DeEtte Gray, president of BAE Systems’ Intelligence & Security sector, said in the release.