Developing priority observational requirements from space using multi-attribute utility theory

Over a two-year period beginning in 2015, a panel of subject matter experts, the Space Platform Requirements Working Group (SPRWG), carried out an analysis and prioritization of different space-based observations supporting the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s operational services in the areas of weather, oceans, and space weather. NOAA leadership used the SPRWG analysis of space-based observational priorities in different mission areas, among other inputs, to inform the Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT)-based value model and the NOAA Satellite Observing Systems Architecture (NSOSA) study.

The goal of the NSOSA study is to develop candidate satellite architectures for the era beginning in approximately 2030. The SPRWG analysis included a prioritized list of observational objectives together with the quantitative attributes of each objective at three levels of performance: a threshold level of minimal utility, an intermediate level that the community expects by 2030, and a maximum effective level, a level for which further improvements would not be cost effective.