BlackSky has completed initial system checkouts and has begun delivering imagery from its fifth and sixth satellites, 58 hours after launch.
Taking full advantage of the advanced analytics offered by the company’s Spectra AI platform, BlackSky is now providing customers with high velocity insights that were previously unattainable.
The addition of these satellites to the BlackSky constellation increases opportunities for intraday observation of customer targets and reduces decision-making timelines. In collaboration with satellite manufacturing partner LeoStella, BlackSky has an active assembly line delivering two satellites per month.
BlackSky’s latest two satellites were launched into an inclined orbit at 1:12 a.m. EDT on August 7 via SpaceX’s Starlink mission. The satellites provide panchromatic and color imagery with sub-meter resolution. BlackSky now has six satellites on-orbit and plans to launch six, additional satellites by the end of Q1 2021, advancing the firm’s dawn-to-dusk global monitoring capability.
Executive Comment
“The rate and volume at which our customers are consuming global monitoring information is increasing dramatically,” said Brian O’Toole, CEO of BlackSky. “To help customers immediately access critical information, BlackSky has developed GEOINT technologies combined with machine learning to rapidly deploy and seamlessly integrate satellites into our product suite. The speed with which we were able to reach first light, demonstrates our ability to move industry benchmarks forward so our customers are always the first to know.”
August 10, 2020, at 11:31 a.m., local time.