Planet Labs, a start-up space and analytics company, has announced plans to launch and operate a fleet of 28 Earth imaging microsatellites in early 2014.
The San Francisco-based company intends to use the ‘always-on’ platform to provide frequently…
Planet Labs, a start-up space and analytics company, has announced plans to launch and operate a fleet of 28 Earth imaging microsatellites in early 2014.
The San Francisco-based company intends to use the ‘always-on’ platform to provide frequently updated imagery and open access data that will be utilised for both humanitarian and commercial purposes.
Planet Labs is currently constructing the cubesats itself and has already launched two satellites, Dove 1 and 2, to demonstrate its technology.
Dove 1 was launched by an Orbital Sciences Antares rocket on 21 April 2013, while Dove 2 was launched as the secondary payload on the Soyuz rocket carrying the Bion-M spacecraft on 19 April.
According to an NOAA disclosure and an FCC filing, both satellites are “3U” cubesats, measuring 10 x 10 x 33 centimetres in size and weighing approximately six kilograms. Dove 1 was licensed to undertake a short-duration experimental mission in a
circular, low Earth orbit (approximately 250km) at an inclination of 51.6 degrees, while Dove 2 has a similar short-duration operating licence to collect images in a 575km circular orbit at an inclination of 64.9 degrees. Both satellites have already begun producing imagery.
The full constellation will also fly in a low orbit, low enough the company says to avoid any potential space debris issues. The satellites will have an optical resolution of 3-5 metres, which Planet Labs argues will allow measurement of a tree canopy but does not compromise individual privacy.
To finance the project, Planet Labs has raised US$13.1m in its venture funding. The primary investment came from Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) in a US$10.1m round at the beginning of the year.
It has since raised a further US$2m from other venture investors including O’Reilly Alpha Tech Ventures (OATV), Capricorn Investment Management, Founders Fund Angel, Data Collective, First Round Capital and Innovation Endeavors (the investment arm of former eBay president Jeff Skoll).
Commenting on the start-up, Steve Jurvetson, managing director of DFJ and member of Planet Labs’ board, said: “As Planet Labs’ first outside investor, DFJ is delighted to help them execute on their unique vision to make the big data landscape of the planet more affordable and accessible.
“We’re seeing unprecedented innovation in the space industry, starting with SpaceX lowering the cost of access, and now with Planet Labs revolutionizing the satellite segment.
“Mapping the world with a radically different type of satellite has the potential to improve many terrestrial businesses with cloud services from above the clouds.”
Jurvetson’s view was echoed by Matt Ocko and Zack Bogue, managing partners and co-founders of Data Collective, who said: “Planet Labs makes it possible to run live, big data analytics on the entire surface of the Earth with fresh data. The applications for this platform are boundless, including those that uniquely help reconcile economic objectives with scarce natural resources.”
Planet Labs was founded in San Francisco in 2010 by ex-NASA physicists and entrepreneurs Robbie Schingler, William Marshall and Chris Boshuizenby. The three previously worked on developing small scientific satellites at Nasa Ames.
Originally called Cosmogia, the project has been kept under the radar until this year with little information released until after the launch of the first two demonstration satellites.
