WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force is betting that satellites designed to spot wildfires can also fill critical gaps in military weather monitoring capabilities. Muon Space, a California-based manufacturer of small satellites, was awarded a $44.6 million contract for in-orbit demonstrations of the company’s environmental monitoring technology in support of military applications.

The Space Systems Command announced Oct. 8 it awarded Muon Space a Phase 3 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) fixed price Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreement, a type of public-partnership deal used by the government to tap commercially available technologies.

The Space Force Space Systems Command’s organization known as System Delta 810, focused on space-based sensing and targeting, said the contrac

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