Artist’s rendition of a satellite – paulfleet/123RF Stock Photo
This week we’re looking at some of the new developments in the Earth Observation (EO) sector that have been announced over the last week, including a new acquisition, new satellite launch, new funding and new data availability!
New Acquisition
Neo Space Group (NSG) has announced an agreement to acquire Airbus Defence and Space’s Earth Observation platform UP42, although this still needs to be formally approved. UP42 was established in Berlin five years ago and provides a way for users to access and use a variety of EO datasets more effectively and easier.
NSG was established earlier this year and is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, it has the mission to become a global leader in satellite and space sector. This acquisition increases NSG Geospatial Division’s capabilities in EO services and supports the Saudi Vision 2030 – a strategy aimed at growing the sector in Saudi Arabia.
New Satellite Launch
On 4th December the Chinese carrier rocket Kuaizhou-1A successfully launched Haishao-1 EO satellite from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province.
Haishao-1 is believed to be a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) remote sensing satellite, with on-board imaging processing capabilities. It designed and built by the Innovation Academy for Microsatellites, part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shanghai.
The satellite is also known by two other names, firstly the CAS Satellite-8, and secondly, and more interestingly, as Sea Sentinel 1 which, of course, is like the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinel satellite mission– although there is no link between them.
The data, particularly given one of its alternative names, is expected to be used to monitor the marine environment, weather monitoring, tracking sea-based objects, and environmental analysis.
New Funding
Indian company, Pixxel, has raised a US$24 Million funding to support its ambition to launch high resolution hyperspectral satellites, known as Fireflies, early next year. The aim is to have an 18 strong constellation of hyperspectral satellites capturing data across 150 wavelengths with spatial resolution of 5 metres on a 40-kilometre swath. It hopes to launch the first of these on the next SpaceX Transporter mission, expected in early 2025, with more following on later SpaceX rideshare missions.
New Data Availability
In New Zealand the Earth Observation Laboratory Aotearoa, based at the University of Auckland Space Institute, are looking to make their EO data publicly available. The laboratory is co-led by Dr Thomas Dowling, University of Auckland environment lecturer, and it wants to provide New Zealand businesses, researchers, government, together with the wider public with easier access to EO data. In addition to the data, it is hoped to build up an open-source library and offer free code and resources to support users gain knowledge and use this resource.
Summary
Although we’ve hit the tricky business month of December – where some businesses wind down towards Christmas, while others are busier than any other time of the year – the EO sector shows it is part of the latter group with lots of interesting new developments being announced. It is exciting to think what the next year could have in store!
