Optimizing future observational capabilities: Trade studies for NOAA's Space Weather Program

In 2020, NOAA initiated planning for a Space Weather Program (SWP) that is currently developed in parallel to the long-standing GEO and LEO programs. SWP capabilities include solar imagery in the visible, UV, and X-ray wavelength ranges as well as solar wind plasma, particle flux, and interplanetary magnetic field measurements. The program will include magnetospheric particle and magnetic-field measurements from geostationary and off-equatorial orbits, and ionospheric/thermospheric imagery and in situ measurements. These objectives form a continuation of the agency's Program of Record 2025 and include new objectives from studies such as the NOAA Satellite Observing System Architecture (NSOSA) and the Space Weather Operations, Research and Mitigation (SWORM) working group reports. Objectives are prioritized based on user needs obtained from the Space Weather Prediction Center and linked to the cost-benefit from future space weather capabilities. The presentation will discuss the trade space of instruments, orbits, and other architectural elements considered at the first stage of the program definition. The presentation will outline the second stage that relies on numerical approaches such as sensitivity analysis and the use of numerical weather prediction (NWP) models. The implications for community involvement in optimizing these operations and research capabilities will be discussed.