Not long ago, the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) finalized a five-year single-award contract, awarded to North American surveying and mapping engineering firm NV5 Global. The contract is called "Geophysical Data Purchasing & Survey Sourcing" (GDPSS). Unlike previous public procurements, this contract did not disclose a specific ceiling amount. I did some checking and will discuss with you what the NGA actually bought this time.

Figure: High-precision oblique aerial photography and 3D spatial data collected by NV5. Source: GIM International / NV5

What Is GDPSS

GDPSS stands for Geophysical Data Purchasing & Survey Sourcing and mainly includes two business mechanisms:

First, commercial data purchasing. NGA no longer relies solely on its own surveys; instead, it directly purchases commercial data and establishes a unified data pool.

Second, survey sourcing. When off-the-shelf commercial data cannot cover specific critical maritime areas or key land areas, NGA can use this contract to commission contractors to mobilize airborne, vessel-based, or ground teams to conduct customized surveys.

What Data Did NGA Actually Purchase?

The contract list covers the following main categories:

  • Gravity data: land, airborne, and marine gravity anomaly survey results.
  • Geomagnetic data: aeromagnetic and ground geomagnetic observation data, used to update global geomagnetic field models.
  • Seismic reflection data: detection of subsurface media layering, fault zones, and shallow bedrock structures.
  • Marine hydrographic and bathymetric data: deep-sea bathymetry, shallow-sea sonar scanning, and seabed topography.
  • Soil and well-logging data: geotechnical mechanical parameters and subsurface borehole exploration data in key areas.

Data Uses

These data have two core uses in defense geospatial information:

First, high-precision autonomous navigation. GPS signals are prone to failure during deep-water submerged navigation or under strong electromagnetic interference. Submarine underwater navigation and missile penetration need to rely on Earth gravity and geomagnetic matching. Mastering high-density global gravity and geomagnetic data is a prerequisite for passive autonomous navigation.

Second, Earth gravity field modeling. NGA is the leading builder of global Earth gravity models (such as EGM96, EGM2008, and subsequent models). Calculating centimeter-level geoids and precise satellite orbit correction parameters must rely on global measured gravity data.

Figure: Global Earth gravity anomaly distribution constructed from satellite and measured data. Source: NASA / NGA / GRACE

Why NV5?

NV5 Global previously acquired aerial survey service provider Quantum Spatial and defense mapping company Axim Geospatial. Global commercial geophysical data are scattered; initiating, reviewing, and negotiating each project separately would result in excessively high process and compliance costs. NV5 is responsible for integrating the commercial supplier network and uniformly completing data standardization and compliant delivery (which can also be regarded as data outsourcing).

Conclusion

From NATO's previous procurement of trafficability geospatial data to NGA's layout of geophysical data sets, it can be seen that GIS is playing an increasingly important role in military affairs, and this demand is undergoing a substantive shift. Previously, many people criticized China's geospatial information controls as too strict, with map review, Mars coordinates (GCJ-02), and confidentiality regulations. Now it seems that these are necessary. Strict data security review and confidentiality red lines are essentially safeguarding national spatial security.

In addition, we should also see that maps have never been just the road networks and buildings visible on a screen. The physical world beneath the surface has long been a battlefield without smoke...

References

  1. GIM International: NV5 Awarded Five-Year NGA Geophysical Data Contract: https://www.gim-international.com/news/nv5-awarded-five-year-nga-geophysical-data-contract
  2. NV5 Official Press Release: NV5 Selected for National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Geophysical Data Purchasing Contract: https://www.nv5.com/
  3. SAM.gov: Geophysical Data Purchasing & Survey Sourcing (GDPSS) Contract Opportunities Notice