With this mission, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will deliver the Jason-3 satellite to low-Earth orbit for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), French space agency Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). Credit: SpaceX

WASHINGTON — SpaceX has won an $82.7 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to launch a next-generation GPS satellite aboard its Falcon 9 rocket in May 2018, the first of nine launch contracts the Defense Department plans to put out for bid over the next three years.

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Mike Gruss is SpaceNews' chief content and strategy officer. He brings a wealth of expertise in strategic content, audience engagement, and media innovation, honed through leadership roles at Sightline Media Group, where most recently he was editor-in-chief...