Federal contractor · CAMBRIDGE, MA

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION received $62.3M in federal contract obligations in FY2026, on 9 awards (−14% vs FY2025). Since FY2017: $657.8M. Its largest customer was National Aeronautics and Space Administration ($62.3M). It also received $17.1M in federal grants and other assistance in FY2026.

Obligations · FY2026
$62.3M
New awards
9
Sole-source
94%
Single offer
2.7%
UEI
Q7N8CH7NR418
Other than small businessNonprofit
Open in the contracts explorerRelationship graph

Company family

Grouped from reported parent companies (UEI) and, where marked, AI judgments that two records name the same organization or group.

2 registered entities of the same company or corporate group, $62.3M in FY2026 together.

  1. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONCAMBRIDGE, MA · Family page
    $62.3M
  2. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIONWASHINGTON, DC
    $17K

AI-inferred: entity-match@1 · jev-1.13.0 · 2026-09-30

Spending by fiscal year

Obligations per federal fiscal year (October–September).

  1. 51.5MFY2017
  2. 62.1MFY2018
  3. 65MFY2019
  4. 57.2MFY2020
  5. 67.5MFY2021
  6. 75.3MFY2022
  7. 64.6MFY2023
  8. 80.1MFY2024
  9. 72.2MFY2025
  10. 62.3MFY2026

Top buying agencies

Obligations in FY2026.

  1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration$62.3M100%
    9 awards

What was bought · Where the work was performed

Obligations in FY2026.

What was bought

  1. Research & development$62.3M100%

Where the work was performed

  1. Middlesex County, MA$62.3M100%

Integrity signals

Shares of the year's obligations, next to the country's.

  • Low competition96%
    US 39% · $60.1M
  • Sole-source awards94%
    US 30% · $58.4M
  • Single-offer competitions2.7%
    US 8.8% · $1.7M
  • Urgency justifications0.0%
    US 5.1% · $0

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Largest awards

  1. FOLLOW ON CONTRACT TO PROVIDE OPERATIONS AND SCIENCE SUPPORT TO THE CXO$1.3B
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Dec 8, 2016 – Jun 11, 2026· MSFC0200308DNAS803060
  2. SOLAR B X RAY TELESCOPE PHASE E$47.6M
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Oct 26, 2016 – Jun 22, 2026· NNM07AB07C
  3. " " OTHER FUNCTIONS - TROPOSPHERIC EMISSIONS: MONITORING OF POLLUTION (TEMPO) - THE TEMPO INVESTIGATION WAS SELECTED UNDER THE NASA SECOND STAND ALONE MISSIONS OF OPPORTUNITY NOTICE (SALMON-2) ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY (AO) PROGRAM ELEMENT APPENDIX J, NNH12ZDA006O-EVI1 FOR THE EARTH VENTURE INSTRUMENT-1 (EVI-1) ELEMENT OF THE EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE PATHFINDER (ESSP) PROGRAM OFFICE'S EARTH VENTURE LINE. TEMPO MEASURES POLLUTION OF NORTH AMERICA, FROM MEXICO CITY TO THE CANADIAN TAR/OIL SANDS, AND FROM THE ATLANTIC TO THE PACIFIC, HOURLY AND AT HIGH SPATIAL RESOLUTION. TEMPO SPECTROSCOPIC MEASUREMENTS IN THE ULTRAVIOLET AND VISIBLE AND PROVIDES A TROPOSPHERIC MEASUREMENT SUITE THAT INCLUDES THE KEY ELEMENTS OF TROPOSPHERIC AIR POLLUTION CHEMISTRY. MEASUREMENTS ARE FROM GEOSTATIONARY ORBIT, TO CAPTURE THE INHERENT HIGH VARIABILITY IN THE DIURNAL CYCLE OF EMISSIONS AND CHEMISTRY. A SMALL PRODUCT SPATIAL FOOTPRINT RESOLVES POLLUTION SOURCES AT SUB-URBAN SCALE. TOGETHER, THIS TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL RESOLUTION IMPROVES EMISSION INVENTORIES, MONITORS POPULATION EXPOSURE, AND ENABLES EFFECTIVE EMISSION-CONTROL STRATEGIES. TEMPO TAKES ADVANTAGE OF A GEOSTATIONARY (GEO) HOST SPACECRAFT TO PROVIDE A MODEST COST MISSION THAT MEASURES THE SPECTRA REQUIRED TO RETRIEVE O3, NO2, SO2, H2CO, C2H2O2, H2O, AEROSOLS, CLOUD PARAMETERS, AND UVB RADIATION. TEMPO THUS MEASURES THE MAJOR ELEMENTS, DIRECTLY OR BY PROXY, IN THE TROPOSPHERIC O3 CHEMISTRY CYCLE. MULTI-SPECTRAL OBSERVATIONS PROVIDE SENSITIVITY TO O3 IN THE LOWERMOST TROPOSPHERE, REDUCING UNCERTAINTY IN AIR QUALITY PREDICTIONS BY 50%. TEMPO QUANTIFIES AND TRACKS THE EVOLUTION OF AEROSOL LOADING. IT PROVIDES NEAR-REAL-TIME AIR QUALITY PRODUCTS THAT WILL BE MADE WIDELY, PUBLICLY AVAILABLE. TEMPO MAKES THE FIRST TROPOSPHERIC TRACE GAS MEASUREMENTS FROM GEO, BY BUILDING ON THE HERITAGE OF FIVE SPECTROMETERS FLOWN IN LOW-EARTH-ORBIT (LEO). THESE LEO INSTRUMENTS MEASURE THE NEEDED SPECTRA, ALTHOUGH AT COARSE SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL RESOLUTIONS, TO THE PRECISIONS REQUIRED FOR TEMPO AND USE RETRIEVAL ALGORITHMS DEVELOPED FOR THEM BY TEMPO SCIENCE TEAM MEMBERS AND CURRENTLY RUNNING IN OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENTS. THIS MAKES TEMPO AN INNOVATIVE USE OF A WELL PROVEN TECHNIQUE, ABLE TO PRODUCE A REVOLUTIONARY DATASET. TEMPO PROVIDES MUCH OF THE ATMOSPHERIC MEASUREMENT CAPABILITY RECOMMENDED FOR GEO-CAPE IN THE 2007 NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL DECADAL SURVEY, EARTH SCIENCE AND APPLICATIONS FROM SPACE: NATIONAL IMPERATIVES FOR THE NEXT DECADE AND BEYOND. GEO-CAPE IS NOT PLANNED FOR IMPLEMENTATION THIS DECADE, HOWEVER, EUROPE (SENTINEL 4) AND ASIA (GEMS) WILL FORM PARTS OF A GLOBAL GEO CONSTELLATION FOR POLLUTION MONITORING, WITH A MAJOR FOCUS ON INTERCONTINENTAL POLLUTION TRANSPORT. TEMPO WILL LAUNCH AT A PRIME TIME TO BE A COMPONENT OF THIS CONSTELLATION.$31.9M
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Nov 7, 2016 – Aug 19, 2026· NNL13AA09C
  4. THE TROPOSPHERIC EMISSIONS: MONITORING OF POLLUTION (TEMPO) CONTRACT, WILL CONDUCT THE NECESSARY RESEARCH, DEVELOP ALGORITHMS, AND PROVIDE NEAR REAL-TIME PRODUCTS FOR NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA'S) HINOD MISSION.$4M
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Mar 26, 2024 – Sep 11, 2026· 80MSFC24CA004
  5. HIGH RESOLUTION CORONAL IMAGER (HI-C) FLARE ROCKET$1.8M
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Mar 4, 2021 – Nov 20, 2025· 80MSFC21C0003
  6. MARSHALL GRAZING INCIDENT X-RAY SPECTROMETER (MAGIXS)$1.7M
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Weapons, aircraft, ships & vehicles· Dec 20, 2016 – Jul 15, 2026· NNM15AA15C
  7. MARSHALL GRAZING INCIDENT X-RAY SPECTROMETER (MAGIXS) 2 MISSION$326K
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Jun 30, 2022 – Dec 5, 2025· 80MSFC22CA013
  8. MAGIXS-3 SAO SUPPORT$243.6K
    National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Middlesex County, MA· Research & development· Jul 14, 2025 – May 21, 2026· 80NSSC25PB457

Federal grants & assistance received

Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION received $17.1M in federal assistance in FY2026, on 115 actions (25 new awards), −25% vs FY2025. Its largest program was 43.001 · Science ($15M).

Assistance · FY2026
$17.1M
New awards
25
Actions
115
Since FY2021
$113.9M

Assistance by fiscal year

  1. 21MFY2021
  2. 20.9MFY2022
  3. 21MFY2023
  4. 11.1MFY2024
  5. 22.8MFY2025
  6. 17.1MFY2026

By type

  1. Grants$17.1M100%

Top programs

  1. 43.001 · Science$15M88%
  2. 47.049 · Mathematical and Physical Sciences$947.7K5.6%
  3. 47.083 · Integrative Activities$689.2K4.0%
  4. 47.050 · Geosciences$428.7K2.5%

Awarding agencies

  1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration$15M88%
  2. National Science Foundation$2.1M12%

Largest awards

  1. THE ADS S MISSION IS ALIGNED WITH NASA S STRATEGIC GOAL OF EXPANDING HUMAN KNOWLEDGE BY ENABLING OPEN SCIENCE AND FOSTERING…$27.8M
    43.001 · Science· National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Cooperative agreement· Feb 18, 2021 – Apr 30, 2026· 80NSSC21M0056
  2. IN OCTOBER 2020 AS PART OF ITS STRATEGIC GOAL TO SUPPORT OPEN INTERDISCIPLINARY SCIENCE NASA REQUESTED THE ADS TEAM TO DEVELOP A PLAN TO…$8.9M
    43.001 · Science· National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Cooperative agreement· Apr 24, 2025 – Jul 17, 2026· 80NSSC25M7105
  3. WE PROPOSE A FIVE YEAR STUDY TO DEVELOP LONG-TERM (27.5 YEAR) EARTH SYSTEM DATA RECORDS (ESDRS) OF GLOBAL FORMALDEHYDE GLYOXAL AND WATER…$3.2M
    43.001 · Science· National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Cooperative agreement· Nov 25, 2020 – May 26, 2026· 80NSSC18M0091
  4. THIS IS A PROPOSAL FOR A COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT BETWEEN NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER (GSFC) AND THE SMITHSONIAN ASTROPHYSICAL…$2.2M
    43.001 · Science· National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Cooperative agreement· Aug 18, 2021 – May 20, 2026· 80NSSC19M0183
  5. THE NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER (GSFC) HAS DEVELOPED AND CONTINUE TO MATURE THE MILLI-K SCALE THERMALLY STABLE AND PICOMETER SPATIAL…$2.1M
    43.001 · Science· National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Project grant· Feb 1, 2022 – Feb 11, 2026· 80NSSC22K0551
  6. THE OVERARCHING GOAL OF THIS PROPOSAL IS TO GAIN A COMPREHENSIVE UNDERSTANDING OF THE GLOBAL ENERGY BUDGET AND ENERGY PARTITIONING IN SOLAR…$1.9M
    43.001 · Science· National Aeronautics and Space Administration· Project grant· Apr 23, 2022 – Aug 13, 2026· 80NSSC20K1283

Source: Federal financial assistance transactions (Financial Assistance Broker Submission) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · FY2021–FY2026.

Subawards

Matched by Unique Entity ID: the first-tier subawards this organization reported as a prime recipient, and those primes reported paying it.

As a prime: who it pays · FY2026

  • Sub-grants: $30K (1 subaward)

1 sub-recipient

  1. MOOG INC$30K100%
    MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA · 1 subaward

As a sub-recipient: who pays it · FY2026

  • Sub-contracts: $3M (4 subawards)
  • Sub-grants: $3M (13 subawards)

14 primes

  1. UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF NEW HAMPSHIRE$2.8M47%
    DURHAM, NH · 3 subawards
  2. THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY$1.5M26%
    UNIVERSITY PARK, PA · 2 subawards
  3. MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY$637.1K11%
    CAMBRIDGE, MA · 1 subaward
  4. LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION$229.8K3.8%
    PALO ALTO, CA · 1 subaward
  5. BAY AREA ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE$195.8K3.3%
    MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA · 1 subaward
  6. OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, THE$110.8K1.8%
    COLUMBUS, OH · 1 subaward
  7. CHESAPEAKE BAY TRUST$97.2K1.6%
    ANNAPOLIS, MD · 1 subaward
  8. MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY$88.7K1.5%
    BALTIMORE, MD · 1 subaward
  9. CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY$70.6K1.2%
    PASADENA, CA · 1 subaward
  10. TRUSTEES OF BOSTON UNIVERSITY$70K1.2%
    BOSTON, MA · 1 subaward

By fiscal year

  • FY2021: $1.5M paid out · $1.7M received
  • FY2022: $2.4M paid out · $18.3M received
  • FY2023: $1.2M paid out · $6.2M received
  • FY2024: $2.8M paid out · $12.3M received
  • FY2025: $667.9K paid out · $5.7M received
  • FY2026: $30K paid out · $6M received

Primes report first-tier subawards of $30,000 or more themselves, and many go unreported (GAO-24-106214). Reporting moved from FSRS to SAM.gov in March 2025 and fewer sub-contracts have been reported since. Amounts are what primes reported; they are never added to prime award totals.

Source: Subawards (first-tier sub-contracts and sub-grants reported under FFATA) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov (reports filed in SAM.gov, formerly FSRS)), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · Subawards loaded from FY2021.

Teaming partners

Companies this company reported paying, primes that reported paying it, from FFATA subaward reports.

Companies it pays

56 companies · $13.4M reported

  1. SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE$1.1M
    SAN ANTONIO, TX · 6 subawards · Scientific research and development services
  2. PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE$907.2K
    BOSTON, MA · 3 subawards
  3. REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN$693.9K
    ANN ARBOR, MI · 3 subawards

Primes that pay it

57 companies · $61.6M reported

  1. UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, COLLEGE PARK$17M
    COLLEGE PARK, MD · 2 subawards
  2. LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION$12.4M
    FORT WORTH, TX · 9 subawards · Scientific research and development services
  3. UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF NEW HAMPSHIRE$7.8M
    DURHAM, NH · 21 subawards · Scientific research and development services

Showing the top 3 of each list. Open the profile for potential partners and the full lists.

Primes report first-tier subawards of $30,000 or more themselves, and many go unreported (GAO-24-106214). Reporting moved from FSRS to SAM.gov in March 2025 and fewer sub-contracts have been reported since. Amounts are what primes reported; they are never added to prime award totals.

Source: Subawards (first-tier sub-contracts and sub-grants reported under FFATA) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov (reports filed in SAM.gov, formerly FSRS)), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · Subawards loaded from 2021.

Competitors

Companies that win from the same buyers in the same markets: obligations by agency and industry compared over the last three fiscal years.

Compared on 8 markets (agency × industry), FY2024–FY2026.

  1. ADNET SYSTEMS INC$218.2M−21% in FY2026
    BETHESDA, MD · 83% of this company's obligations are in markets they both serveNational Aeronautics and Space Administration · Scientific research and development services
  2. AERODYNE-SGT ENGINEERING SERVICES, LLC$258.1M−31% in FY2026
    CAPE CANAVERAL, FL · 83% of this company's obligations are in markets they both serveNational Aeronautics and Space Administration · Scientific research and development services
  3. RSI-QUANTITECH JV LLC$207.2M−7.4% in FY2026
    HUNTSVILLE, AL · 73% of this company's obligations are in markets they both serveNational Aeronautics and Space Administration · Scientific research and development services

Showing the top 3 of 25 competitors. Open the profile for the full list.

Who sells to the same buyers in the same markets, not who wins against whom on a given contract. Prime contract obligations by the agency and NAICS code of each award; subawards are never added. A company is a family of legal entities, joined by parent UEI or, in part, by an AI reading of names.

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · FY2024–FY2026.

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.