Solicitation
Hydrosphere, Biosphere, & Geophysics (HBG) Support Services II - Final Request for Proposal (FRFP)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
AI summaryNASA's Goddard Space Flight Center is seeking a contractor to support science research, computing, instrument development, field campaigns and outreach for its Earth Sciences Division laboratories in Greenbelt, Maryland. The text says it is a small business set-aside, although SAM.gov does not show one. The contract is a five-year hybrid indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ: work is ordered in separate task orders) contract, and proposals are due December 4, 2026, 2:00 PM Eastern through NASA's online file box. More in the summary
AI summary Beta
This summary may miss requirements: 20 of 32 attachments weren't read (Exhibits GPM 1A-1C .xlsx, Exhibits GPM 2-10.xlsx and 18 more). Check the attachments on SAM.gov.
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center is seeking a contractor to support science research, computing, instrument development, field campaigns and outreach for its Earth Sciences Division laboratories in Greenbelt, Maryland. The text says it is a small business set-aside, although SAM.gov does not show one. The contract is a five-year hybrid indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ: work is ordered in separate task orders) contract, and proposals are due December 4, 2026, 2:00 PM Eastern through NASA's online file box.
Who can bid
- Small business under NAICS 541715 (size standard 1,000 employees); the text says NASA will compete this as a small business set-aside
- Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code that matches the corporate address submitted with the proposal
How to submit: Upload to NASA's Enterprise File Sharing and Sync Box (EFSS Box, a secure NASA file-sharing site); Contracting Officer Cassandra K. Moore, cassandra.k.moore@nasa.gov. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (8)
From the version posted Oct 26, 2026.
- Serious: Small business set-aside in the text, none on SAM.gov. The notice and cover letter say the buy is a small business set-aside under a 1,000-employee size standard, but SAM.gov shows no set-aside, so only a small business should plan to bid.
- Worth checking: Past performance must meet a size threshold. Amendment 2 sets the prime's relevant contracts at average annual cost/fee of at least $8M (it was $8,164,248 in the solicitation) and significant subcontractors at $1M; firms without such records get a Neutral rating.
- Worth checking: Notice of intent to submit 48 hours ahead. Amendment 1 asks offerors to email the Contracting Officer at least 48 hours before submitting and to test EFSS Box at least 5 days before the due date.
Show all 8Show fewer
- Worth checking: Question deadline tied to the release of the Final RFP. Questions are due within 14 calendar days after release of the Final RFP at 2PM EST, but the text gives no calendar date, and Amendment 1 replaced the posted RFP with the final version.
- Worth checking: Cost-type pricing with fixed rate ceilings. A bidder must price direct labor, indirect rates and fee for CPFF task orders and fully loaded rates for FFP task orders over several contract years, and those become not-to-exceed rates; NASA tests them for cost realism.
- Worth checking: Past performance questionnaires depend on references. References must send their Past Performance Questionnaires straight to the Contracting Officer before the proposal due date, so a bidder needs them early.
- Minor: Contract changed from CPFF-only to hybrid. The April 2025 draft was cost-plus-fixed-fee only; the final adds firm-fixed-price task orders, and Amendment 2 removed the prime profit rate matrix for FFP task orders from Attachment B.
- Minor: 30-day phase-in done under a separate procurement. A phase-in period before the effective date is handled under a different vehicle, so the winner may need to be ready to start before this contract begins.
Read from the notice and 12 attachments. 20 of 32 not read. Show which files.
- Amendment 1_HBG II_Solicitation 80GSFC27R0015.pdf (read)
- HBG II Hybrid FRFP_Solicitation_80GSFC27R0015_Rev 1.pdf (read)
- HBG II_Hybrid FRFP Solicitation_80GSFC27R0015_10-20.pdf (read)
- 80GSFC27R0015_HBG II_AMENDMENT 2_HGB II.pdf (read)
- HBG II Hybrid FRFP Cover Letter_Rev 1.pdf (read)
- HBG II Hybrid FRFP Cover Letter.pdf (read)
- Attachment A - HBG2_SOW_v3.2.pdf (read)
- Enclosure 1 - Contract Historical Data.pdf (read)
- Enclosure 2 - GPM Specified Non-Mgmt DL-PDs.pdf (read)
- Enclosure 3 - QASP Cost-Type Contract.pdf (read)
- Enclosure 4 - Sample SH Plan.pdf (read)
- 80GSFC27R0015_HBG II_Attachment B - Matrix. Rev. 1.pdf (read)
- Exhibits GPM 1A-1C .xlsx: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
- Exhibits GPM 2-10.xlsx: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
- Exhibit 11 - PastPerfQues._Rev. 1.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment B - Matrix.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment D - Safety and Health Plan.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment E - Security IT DRD.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment E.1-Attachment NASA C-SCRM Plan.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment F - Requirements Statements List..pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment G - Contract Historical Data.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment H - Govt Property List.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment I - IAGP LIST.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment J.1 - OCI.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment J.2 - OCI-Plan (DRD)..pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment K - CPIC DRD.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment K.1 - Attachment CPIC DRD Template.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment L - CITAR.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment M - CAIRIA DRD.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Exhibit 11 - PastPerfQues_.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment C - Financial MGMT Report.pdf: not summarized: open it on SAM.gov
- Attachment L.1 - CITAR Report Template.xlsx: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
Full summary
What they want
- Science support: general research, modeling, simulation and data assimilation, and scientific mission planning for the Hydrosphere, Biosphere and Geophysics (HBG) laboratories and the Terrestrial Information Systems Laboratory
- Computing: science data processing operations, plus archiving and distributing data products
- Instrument development for space, airborne and in situ (on-site) measurements
- Calibration and validation: satellite instrument performance analysis, calibration laboratory support and specialized laboratory support
- Field campaigns: planning and running in situ and airborne data collection, with data archiving and quality control
- Scientific communications: technical writing and editing, education and public outreach, and maintaining project web sites
- Work is ordered through task orders, both cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price, performed on site at NASA Goddard and at contractor facilities
- Contract type
- Hybrid indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract with cost-plus-fixed-fee (CPFF: NASA pays allowed costs plus a set fee) task orders and firm-fixed-price (FFP: one set price) task orders
- Period of performance
- Ordering period of five years from the contract effective date. Anticipated award April 2027, with a 30-day phase-in beginning May 2027 and a June 2027 contract effective date.
- Place of performance
- On site at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, and off site at the contractor's facilities and the locations named in individual task orders
- Estimated value
- Contract maximum $419.2M over the effective period, with a minimum of $5,000,000 guaranteed to be ordered
- How they'll choose
- Tradeoff (best value): NASA may pay more for a better offer, using Source Evaluation Board procedures. Only Mission Suitability is numerically scored.
- Offers due
- December 4, 2026, 2:00 PM Eastern
- How to submit
- Upload to NASA's Enterprise File Sharing and Sync Box (EFSS Box, a secure NASA file-sharing site); Contracting Officer Cassandra K. Moore, cassandra.k.moore@nasa.gov
What they'll judge offers on
- Mission Suitability (numerically scored; its subfactors are in Section M, which was not fully included in the text read)
- Cost: the Government Pricing Model (GPM) costs and the Attachment B labor, indirect and fee rates are checked for reasonableness and cost realism
- Past Performance: recent (ongoing or completed less than 5 years before the RFP) and relevant contracts of the prime and significant subcontractors, rated by level of confidence
What to include when you submit
- Email the Contracting Officer (cc michelle.r.padfield@nasa.gov) at least 48 hours before the intended submission date to say you will submit
- Offerors new to EFSS Box should coordinate a test file with the Contracting Officer at least 5 days before the proposal due date
- Email a list of all uploaded file names to the Contracting Officer after the upload is complete
- Number each file in order and label its contents; file names include the offeror's name and the subcontractor's name if any (for example Mission Suitability volume, Past Performance volume, Cost-Price volume in Excel)
- Use only letters, numbers, dashes and single spaces in file names; avoid "/" and special characters; a single .zip file is encouraged and each file must stay under 150GB
- Files must be searchable, with no password protection, hidden formulas, locked tables or links to data not included; do not send scanned documents except those that must be in native form
- Cost Volume exhibits must be completed in Microsoft Excel with working cell formulas
- Have a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code that matches the corporate address on the proposal
- Ask references to send Past Performance Questionnaires (Exhibit 11) directly to the Contracting Officer before the proposal due date
- Past performance references: prime contractor contracts must show average annual cost/fee of at least $8M; significant subcontractor contracts must meet the Amendment 2 threshold of $1M
- Acknowledge each amendment (Amendments 1 and 2) before the response due date
- Send questions in writing only to the Contracting Officer, within 14 calendar days after the Final RFP was released at 2:00 PM EST
After award, you must have
- Organizational conflict of interest (OCI) avoidance plan due 30 days after the contract effective date
- Safety and Health Plan due 30 days after contract award
Not in the notice text
- Section L (proposal instructions, including page limits and volume contents), Mission Suitability subfactors and weights in Section M, and parts of Sections H and I were left out of the text read. Check the solicitation PDF on SAM.gov.
- These were attached but not read: Exhibit 11 (Past Performance Questionnaire), Attachments D, E, E.1, F, G, H, I, J.1, J.2, K, K.1, L and M, Attachment C, and the Exhibits GPM 1A-1C, GPM 2-10 and Attachment L.1 spreadsheets.
- Parts of Enclosures 2, 3 and 4 and the Statement of Work (Attachment A) were also cut short, and Enclosure 1 (Contract Historical Data) shows only a title page.
- No incumbent is named, and Attachment G (Contract Historical Data) was attached but not read.
- The exact calendar date of the question deadline is not given, only 14 calendar days after the Final RFP release.
- How the six contract years in the pricing tables fit the five-year ordering period is not explained in the text read.
- Whether a security clearance or U.S. citizenship is needed is not stated in the text read; Attachment E (Security IT) was not read.
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside: any business, large or small, can bid unless the notice says otherwise.
- How to submit, from the AI summary: Upload to NASA's Enterprise File Sharing and Sync Box (EFSS Box, a secure NASA file-sharing site); Contracting Officer Cassandra K. Moore, cassandra.k.moore@nasa.gov. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 26, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD
- Product/service code
- AJ11 · General Science and Technology R&D Services; General Science and Technology; Basic Research
- Business type
- Engineering, architecture & research (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 541715)
- Versions
3 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 26, 2026 · Amendment 0002 (this version)Due Dec 4, 2026
- Oct 22, 2026 · Amendment 0001Due Dec 4, 2026
- Oct 21, 2026 · SolicitationDue Dec 4, 2026
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
- How to respond to a solicitation (8 steps)
- How to read a government solicitation
- How to price a government contract
Terms on this notice: Solicitation
Full notice text from SAM.gov
UPDATE #1 – Amendment #0001 to the RFP was released on October 22, 2026. UPDATE #2 – Amendment #0002 to the RFP was released on October 26, 2026. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), hereby invites interested parties to review the Final Request for Proposal (FRFP) for the Hydrosphere, Biosphere, and Geophysics (HBG) Support Services II requirement supporting the Earth Sciences Division (ESD) at NASA/GSFC. The principal purpose of this requirement is to provide science research that conceives, develops, and applies space, field-deployed (i.e. airborne and in situ) and laboratory based technologies and observations to address issues of importance to society. These include but are not limited to water resources, land and ocean ecosystems, global and regional sea level change, changes in the Earth’s cryosphere, gravity field, magnetic field, solid Earth, and the terrestrial reference frame. The Statement of Work, Attachment A, describes the scope of the requirement. This contract is for support of a full range of science and research activities across the breadth of the various Laboratories that make up the HBG sub-division: the Cryospheric Sciences, Ocean Ecology, Hydrological Sciences, Biospheric Sciences, and Geodesy and Geophysics Laboratories. This contract is also for support of science, research and computing activities within the Terrestrial Information Systems Laboratory (TISL), also in the ESD. For the purposes of this document and contract the term HBG will be used to encompass all the Laboratories of the HBG sub-division and the TISL. NASA will conduct this acquisition as a small business set-aside. This competitive acquisition was originally contemplated as a Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee (CPFF), Indefinite-Delivery/Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ) contract with the ability to issue CPFF task orders. Following further acquisition planning and assessment of the Government's requirements, the contract structure has been modified. The HBG II Draft Request for Proposal (DRFP) posted on April 8, 2025 was issued as an IDIQ CPFF solicitation. As amended, this competitive acquisition will now result in a HYBRID Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) with the ability to issue Cost Plus Fixed Fee (CPFF) AND Firm- Fixed Price (FFP) task orders. The contract will have an effective ordering period of five years from the contract effective date. Interested offerors are encouraged to review the solicitation and all associated attachments for complete details regarding the requirements and proposal submission instructions. Please see the attached cover letter for additional information.